Two Weeks
by adigallia9
Summary: How Juliet changes her mind from leaving the island to staying in just two weeks. A Days of Dharma fic.
1. Day One

**Author's Note:** This is a fourteen-part story, each chapter dealing with one day in that two week period when Juliet went from wanting to leave the island to staying. The first chapter picks up the morning after the wonderful dock scene from _LaFleur_. I hope you enjoy it!

**Day One**

Juliet woke up to a sore back, having spent the night on a lumpy couch in the rec room. It could be worse, she thought, eyeing Miles, Jin and Daniel still asleep on the floor. It was a peaceful morning, with warm sunlight streaming through the windows. But Juliet was restless.

She closed her eyes again and sighed. Despite it all, she was back here again. Stuck in the same claustrophobic village she'd been trying to escape for three years. It was almost ironic – after defecting from her people, almost getting rescued, and then bouncing through time, she still ended up back where she started. Agreeing to stay for even two more weeks suddenly seemed like an unbearable lapse in judgment. But then she remembered the night before on the dock and James' wide smile when she'd agreed to stay. She could tough it out for two more weeks. Just two more weeks and she'd finally leave.

Strengthened by this resolve, Juliet opened her eyes… and found a man staring down at her. Startled, she sprang up with a hand on her chest, trying to slow her racing heart. "Damnit, James, what was that for?"

Grinning broadly, obviously pleased with himself, Sawyer said, "Morning, Sunshine! Didn't mean to scare you. Just wanted to see if you were up."

"Now you know," she grumbled, rubbing her sore back.

He laughed. "I don't know why you're so cranky. At least you got to sleep on a couch last night."

"Well, waking up to a strange man in your face isn't the best way to start the day."

"Aww, I'm hurt," he fake-pouted. "After all we've been through, after all these years," he grinned as she rolled her eyes, "I'm still a stranger?"

She sighed, deciding not to play into his teasing so early in the day. "I do appreciate you letting me have the couch last night. It was very considerate of you."

"It was, wasn't it?" Sawyer said. "And people seem to think I'm just some redneck. I can be quite the gentleman." And to accentuate his point, he held out his hand to her. She shook her head, but nonetheless gave him her hand and let him gently pull her up.

"You're one of those obnoxious morning people, aren't you?" she asked, once she was standing.

"Absolutely," he said. "And I look forward to driving you crazy every morning for the next two weeks."

* * *

After they had roused Miles, Jin and Daniel, the group headed to the cafeteria. They got plates of food and sat at a small table off to one side, where they wouldn't be overheard. Sawyer started in a low voice, "We only got two weeks, remember. I'm meeting with Horace after breakfast so we can get started looking for our people as soon as possible. Remember it's 1974, so we can't talk about anything that happens after that. As much as possible, lay low and stick to ourselves."

It was a nice try, Juliet thought, but the group didn't seem inclined to listen. Jin for one, only understood about half of what Sawyer had said. Daniel, who had been sullen all morning, had perked up when he saw a young Charlotte outside the window. Miles was distracted by a busty brunette at a nearby table. Sawyer, realizing all this, sighed and looked at Juliet. She stifled a laugh at his exasperation, before clapping her hands once to get their attention, "Guys," she said sharply, waiting until the three other men were looking at her before continuing, "It's 1974. Don't do anything stupid, okay?" She stared at each man until he nodded.

Sawyer shook his head, "Thanks, Juliet."

"You'll learn. Dealing with a group of guys is like dealing with children," she smirked.

Sawyer was about to protest, when Horace strolled up to their table.

"Good morning," He greeted them. "I hope you all slept well. I know the rec room isn't the most comfortable of lodgings. "

"That's certainly true," Miles huffed.

Sawyer glared at Miles before addressing Horace, "Ignore him. The rest of us do. The rec room was fine. We're just glad you're letting us stay and look for our people."

"Of course," Horace replied. "Whenever you're ready, Jim, we can discuss how that's going to work. And I've got Deb looking into some other accommodations for you. We can't have you sleeping on the floor for two weeks."

"Thanks, boss," Sawyer said. "Let us finish up our breakfast and then I'll meet you, okay?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you all around. Let us know if you need anything." Horace nodded at them and went back to his table.

"He is very nice," Jin said.

"Yeah," Miles agreed, "What a lovable old hippy."

Sawyer shook his head and turned to Juliet and Jin. "Am I that annoying?" he asked, gesturing towards Miles.

"No, you are worse!" Jin said, earning a big laugh from Juliet and a slap on the back from Miles. Even Sawyer laughed, though he said, "I think I liked you better when you didn't know any English, Chewie."

"Hey!" Miles piped up. "That's 1977. You're three years too early for that reference."

"Weren't you just saying we needed to watch what we say?" Juliet added.

"Son of a bitch," Sawyer muttered. "No Star Wars nicknames." He turned to Juliet, "And I thought you were supposed to have my back, Blondie? Don't encourage these two yahoos."

"I do, but I thought you deserved it after that stunt you pulled this morning."

"Fair enough," he admitted. "But we're even now."

The group finished their breakfast and headed out. Horace met up with them, accompanied by a woman. "Hello again, friends. This is Deb," he said gesturing towards his companion. "She handles the logistics of our little operation here."

"Hi, nice to meet you all," Deb said cheerfully. "Considering recent events, Amy is moving out of her house and in with a friend. We'll be housing you temporarily in Amy and Paul's old house then. I'd be happy to go show you to your new living quarters right now if that's convenient." Deb smiled warmly at all of them, though Juliet noticed her attention lingered on Sawyer for an extra second or two. She seemed like a sweet girl and Juliet hoped, with a pang of guilt, that she was off the island before Ben and the rest of her former people purged Dharma.

"Alright," Sawyer replied. "Jin, Miles and Daniel will go with you," Juliet laughed inwardly at Deb's disappointed face, "while Juliet and I meet with Horace. That okay with you, Juliet?"

Juliet was surprised but pleased by his request. "Absolutely."

"Wonderful. We'll catch up with you later then," Horace said. Deb led Jin, Miles and Daniel off, shooting a jealous look at Juliet and missing the leer Miles was shooting at her.

"Jim, Juliet, please have a seat," Horace began, gesturing towards a nearby bench and pulling up a chair beside them. "Juliet, I don't think I've really had the pleasure of talking to you yet, so welcome. I know the situation that brought you all here was not ideal, but we'll do whatever we can in the next two weeks to make you feel welcome and help your find your crew."

"Thank you," Juliet said, impressed by his sincerity.

"What was your role on your ship? Or were you just being a good wife and supporting Jim?"

It took a second for Juliet to understand what Horace was implying. But then, "Wait, what?" Juliet asked, looking over at an equally dumbfounded Sawyer.

"Aren't you two married?" Horace asked.

"What?" Sawyer exclaimed.

"No, no, not at all," Juliet said quickly.

"My apologies," Horace said, looking embarrassed. "I just thought… you seem very close and the way Jim asked you to join us at this meeting…"

"Don't worry about it, H" Sawyer replied, laughing it off. "She's been my right-hand man since the crash is all. Juliet was our-"

"Mechanic," Juliet cut him off, before he could get out the word _doctor._ Sawyer frowned at her, making a face that said _Mechanic? _She nodded at him slightly. "I was the mechanic."

"Again, I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. As for finding your crew," Horace said, changing the subject and earning a silent _thank you_ from Juliet, "we do have limited supplies, being on an island. We can spare one of our Jeeps for your use. But it won't hold your whole team, and we cannot allow you to take it outside our fence. Any searching you do beyond the fence you will have to do on-foot, completely independent of the Dharma Initiative, and you will be on your own in regards to the Hostiles. I'm sorry for the limitations, but it's really the best we can do."

"You're the captain here, you gotta take care of your men first and foremost, I understand that. " Sawyer said. It amused Juliet how easily he slipped into the role of ship's captain, how being a leader seemed to fit him.

"Beyond that," Horace said, lightening the mood, "Please feel free to make yourselves at home and let us know if there's anything we can do."

"Appreciate it," Sawyer said. "Juliet and I will go back and brief our team and then we'll probably head straight out to search, since we only got two weeks."

"I'll give this to Juliet then," Horace handed Juliet the Jeep key. "The motorpool is right over there. The mechanics will be happy to show you which Jeep to use. The island terrain is rough on our vehicles, but I'm sure Juliet will be able to fix any problems you might encounter. Now if you'll excuse me, I do have a lot of work to get to today." Horace stood and shook Sawyer and Juliet's hands. "Best of luck with your search."

Sawyer waited until Horace was out of hearing range before turning to Juliet. "Mechanic?" he hissed. "Hell, Juliet, I'm the con artist. Lying's my thing. And an important rule of conning someone is making your lies believable and consistent. What happens when the Jeep breaks down and we have to tell them you can't fix it? Our story is shaky as it is."

"How do you know I'm not a mechanic?" Juliet asked him, maintaining a perfectly serious and neutral face.

Sawyer stared at her, searching her face to see if she was lying. She broke into a grin. "You can't tell if I'm telling the truth, can you?" She laughed. Three years of hiding her emotions from the Others was paying off.

"Damnit, Blondie. Come on, you're not a mechanic."

"Maybe. Maybe I am," she said. "Let's go find the boys and our new house." She stood and started walking towards the barracks.

"But why couldn't you just say you were our doctor?" Sawyer fell into step beside her. "Why a mechanic?"

"I have my reasons, " she said, mysterious on purpose, enjoying the fact that this was clearly bothering him.

"Fine," he said, mock-annoyed at her. "If you're not going to tell me the truth, don't be surprised when you wake up to my smiling face nice and early again tomorrow."

She groaned, but then looked up at him, catching his eye. They both broke into a smile. Maybe two weeks wouldn't be so bad after all, she mused.


	2. Day Two

**Author's Note: **Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the first chapter. Your feedback is very much appreciated!

**Day Two**

For the second day in a row, Juliet woke up to Sawyer standing over her. He still surprised her, but not nearly as much as the previous morning.

"If you keep doing that, it's going to lose its effectiveness," she mumbled, sitting up and stretching.

"Yeah, but you still jumped. Means it's still worthwhile," he said, grinning.

She stood up slowly, feeling much better this morning after having slept in a proper bed. "You sleep better last night?" she asked him.

"Yep. I'm glad I ended up sharing a room with you, though. I got up in the middle of the night to take a leak and I could hear Jin snoring through the door. Poor Miles."

Juliet laughed, imaging Miles and Jin snuggled up together in the double bed in what had been Amy and Paul's master bedroom. She sat back down on her twin bed gratefully and faced Sawyer, sitting across from her on his bed. "So what's the plan for today, Captain LaFleur?"

"We go out and start searching again, as soon as possible, " he stated. It was as if the light-hearted Sawyer façade had melted away, replaced by a leader genuinely concerned for the well being of his people. She was surprised by how loyal he really was, underneath the nicknames and teasing. "Since Miles went out with us yesterday, I was thinking Jin should go with us today. Miles can stay behind and babysit the mad scientist."

She nodded in agreement. "Do you think Daniel will be okay?"

He sighed. "I don't know. We've all been pretty shaken up these past few weeks, but with a miniature Charlotte running around…. it's going to mess with his head. And his head was already a little messed up to begin with." The pair sat in silence, both contemplating Daniel's sad situation. Deciding there was nothing they could do about it at that moment, Juliet tried to lighten the mood. "Did you notice Deb staring at you yesterday? I think she's got a crush on you already," she teased.

He grinned. "Of course she does. What woman wouldn't?" He stood up and headed towards the door. "But I'm not really interested right now."

Juliet stiffened, realizing he must be thinking about Kate and feeling terrible that she had brought it up at all. How could she forget that Daniel wasn't the only one who'd lost someone?

Seeming to sense her discomfort, Sawyer continued, "I've got to size up the field here first. See who's worth my time. Deb's only the first girl I've met." He winked at Juliet and then left the room. Juliet laughed, shaking her head. He was a handful, that was for sure.

* * *

Juliet, Sawyer and Jin spent the day out in the Jeep, searching the island for their people. It was an uneventful day and they found no sign of anyone. Spending hours in the familiar jungles surrounding the Dharma village, Juliet couldn't help but feel frustrated and antsy. Memories of the three years she had spent there, memories of all the awful things Ben had done kept replaying in her mind.

Sawyer seemed to pick up on her agitation. Whenever she would look over at him, he'd flash her an appreciative smile. She was happy to help out, and Sawyer was genuinely grateful she had stayed, she knew. But it was hard, being trapped on the island again when she had had the opportunity to leave.

So she was relieved when they ended searching for the day, and the three of them headed back to Amy and Paul's house. Miles and Daniel were out when they got in, so Sawyer settled in with a book and Juliet took the opportunity to teach Jin more English. They passed a half hour peacefully, Jin doing well and picking up on the words quickly, when Miles came banging into the house trailed by Daniel.

"You're back," Miles announced, "Find anything?"

"Not a thing," Sawyer replied, not looking up from his book.

"Well, guess what I found just now at the cafeteria?" Miles seemed genuinely agitated and distracted.

"What? Is everything okay?" Juliet asked as Miles began pacing around the kitchen. She'd never seen him so restless.

"Oh, you know. I was just in line to get some food, and who gets in line behind me? Oh yeah, my _mother._"

"Your mother?" Sawyer asked, looking up from his book with an expression of disbelief on his face.

"Yep. My mom. What the hell is she doing on the island? I've never been here before. At least, not that I remember." He leaned against the kitchen counter, running his hands over his face.

"When were you born, Miles? Did you see your father too?" Juliet asked.

"I'm not going to be born for another three years. 1977. And I don't know my father. He left us when I was a baby."

Sawyer and Juliet looked at each other. "Well," Juliet suggested, "your mom must leave the island within the new few years, before you're born."

"I guess," Miles replied, obviously still upset.

"You should probably try and avoid her as much as possible," Sawyer said. "In case you look familiar and she starts asking too many questions."

"Yeah, sure," Miles said. "It's just such a weird coincidence. First there's a baby Charlotte running around," Daniel flinched at the name, "and now my mom is here? Who's next? Dan, is there little version of you running around that I should look out for?" He slumped down into a seat.

Juliet reached over to squeeze his hand. "Hey, it'll be okay."

"I know. It's just – this place is so creepy," Miles shrugged. "Anyways, what are you all up to?"

Juliet agreed wholeheartedly about the island being creepy, but she could tell Miles wanted to change the subject. "I'm helping Jin with his English."

"Yes," Jin said. "I am learning a lot. Juliet is a big help."

Juliet smiled at him. "You're very welcome, Jin. You're doing wonderfully."

"I got something to teach you," Sawyer said as he got up from where he was reading and sauntered over to the table. He leaned over and whispered something to Jin. "Now say that to Juliet."

"To Juliet?" Jin asked.

"Yep, it's a compliment. To thank her for all her help." Sawyer said seriously. Juliet eyed him suspiciously.

"Ok." Jin turned toward Juliet and said slowly, "You have a great rack."

Juliet froze in surprise and there was a moment of silence before both Sawyer and Miles started laughing uproariously. Even Daniel joined in, though poor Jin looked bewildered. "What did I say? What did I say?" he repeated.

"Oh, man, you just told Juliet she has great… you know…" Miles pointed towards Juliet's chest.

Jin instantly turned red and began apologizing profusely. "I am sorry. I am sorry."

Juliet began laughing herself. "It's okay, Jin. Just take this as a lesson not to listen to anything James tells you." She looked over at Sawyer and raised an eyebrow. Leave it to him to find such an unorthodox way to diffuse the tension caused by Miles' announcement.

He smiled back at her, "Hey, you can't blame me. It's the truth." His smile turned wolfish and Juliet could feel herself blushing furiously.

"That was great." Miles said, clapping Sawyer on the back. As she sat there laughing with these four men, Juliet realized Miles was right - this _was_ great. For the first time in years, she felt like she belonged, felt a connection to these people. After all they'd been through together, she cared about them and enjoyed being with them. It was a welcome feeling after years of being so alone. And as much as she wanted to leave the island, she was slowly realizing maybe she didn't want to leave _them._


	3. Day Three

**Day Three**

Juliet woke up slowly, cuddling back into the blankets and dozing for a few minutes. It abruptly struck her that this morning was far too peaceful and she sat up, looking around for Sawyer. She was surprised to find him sitting on his bed across the room, reading a book.

"What, no wake-up today?" she asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Thought I'd give you a day off," he replied, not looking up from his book. "I don't want you to get too used to it. It's no fun unless I can scare you."

It was then she noticed how far away he was holding the book from his face, and she started to laugh.

"Something amusing there, Blondie?" he asked, still engrossed in his reading.

"Just you. Lost your reading glasses, I take it?"

At that, he finally looked up at her and frowned. "As a matter of fact, yes. Seems I lost them somewhere between 2004 and 1954."

"You'll give yourself a headache, reading without them."

"I know that. But I gotta do something while I'm waiting for you to wake up, Sleeping Beauty."

"I'm up now. When are we starting today?"

"Thought I'd give you the day off. You've been out with me the past two days. I'll take Miles and Jin with me today." He put his book down on the bedside table and reached for his boots.

She frowned. "It's not a problem. I don't mind going again."

"Don't worry about it. It's fair this way."

"I'd rather go with you." When he didn't respond, but kept lacing his boots without looking at her, she said more forcefully, "James." He looked up grudgingly.

"Why don't you want me to go with you today?" She asked. "I know the island better than you, Miles or Jin."

"Ahh, I know. It's just… you seemed anxious yesterday. Like being stuck out there was driving you crazy. Just thought you could use a day off. Besides, maybe you can get Daniel to talk to you a bit. You'll have more luck than the rest of us will. Or," he tried to be casual, "go to the motorpool. Fix some vans or something."

She rolled her eyes. "You're still stuck on that?"

"Well, maybe if you would just tell me whether or not you were actually a grease monkey in a past life, I could stop being stuck on it. But I know you're not going to give up the one thing you have to lord over me – I sure as hell wouldn't." He finished tying his boots and stood up, facing her. "So what do you say? Will you lay low here today?"

Juliet considered it. She had to admit he was right - a day off would be nice. Sitting in the Jeep for hours yesterday had made her a bit stir-crazy. But still… "Just be careful. You know how dangerous the island can be."

"Aww, darling, I didn't know you cared." He flashed her a smug smile, which she promptly erased with a well-aimed pillow.

* * *

Once Sawyer, Miles and Jin had left, Juliet spent some time with Daniel. The poor man was still devastated, rambling on about Charlotte and time travel. She made him some tea and sat with him for a while, before leaving to take a short walk by herself.

It was refreshing to get some time to herself, and interesting to see how different the village looked thirty years prior to when she'd last seen it. Everyone she met gave her a warm "Hello" and some even stopped to ask if she needed anything or if she was lost. They were certainly nicer than the people who would live here in thirty years, she thought.

As Juliet wandered past the school, she stopped to watch some of the children playing out in the yard. With the bucolic setting, the perfect weather, and the sights and sounds of children playing, it was an almost idyllic scene. A place anyone would want to live. It was so different from her experience here. As she watched, a girl caught her attention, her long brown hair reminding Juliet wistfully of a young Rachel. The girl was apart from the main group of children, being chased by a skinny boy with glasses. Juliet smiled as she watched them, their laughter and their voices carrying over to her.

"Annie, slow down! It's not fair – you're too fast!" the boy called out.

"It's not my fault you're such a slow poke, Benjamin Linus!"

Juliet froze. With those two words, the idyll of the scene was destroyed and Juilet's mind reeled. Benjamin Linus. _Benjamin Linus. _She had to leave this place.

* * *

When Sawyer, Jin and Miles returned that evening, Juliet was curled up in a chair in the living room. Every horrible feeling Ben inspired in her had been dredged up – fear, loneliness, vulnerability, anger, hatred. She felt completely out of control and hopeless, and her need to leave the island was overpowering.

"Nothing again today," Sawyer announced as he strode into the house.

"But we did teach Jin some new words," Miles laughed.

"I will not say them," Jin added, blushing faintly. Juliet didn't respond, distracted by her thoughts about Ben.

"Hey, you okay, Juliet?" Sawyer frowned, sitting down on the couch near Juliet.

She looked down, stifling her emotions as best as she could. "You were right, Miles," she said, ignoring Sawyer, "about there being other people we know here. I saw someone today."

"Who? Not your mom too?" Miles asked.

"No." Juliet stood up and headed towards the kitchen, struggling to keep her distress in check. "Ben."

Silence greeted her pronouncement. She got herself a glass of water so she wouldn't have to look at anyone.

"Wow," Miles managed after a bit.

"He's gotta be just a kid at this point," Sawyer reasoned.

"No more than ten, I'd say," Juliet responded, her face and voice neutral.

"Did you know he was part of Dharma?" Sawyer asked. Juliet thought she heard a slight accusation in his question.

"I knew he purged Dharma, but I never heard him talk about being part of it. He claimed to have been born on the island. But he lied so often I never knew when to believe him." Juliet felt her control slipping, the emotions she'd been suppressing all day boiling to the surface. "I'm… it's been a long day. I'm going to go to bed." She left quickly, purposefully avoiding eye contact.

She entered her and Sawyer's room, shutting the door behind her. She sat on her bed, and ran her hands over her face, trying to stop the tears from coming. The door opened not long after, and Sawyer came in.

"You okay, Juliet?" he asked.

She looked up at him with watery eyes. "No. No, James, I'm not." She stood up and advanced toward him. "I need to leave. I need to get off this island. I can't stay here, knowing he's nearby."

"Whoa, whoa, calm down." Sawyer held up his hands. "It's okay, he's just a kid. He can't do anything to you."

"He can. You don't understand. I can't stay here. I need to leave." She felt increasingly panicked. "I just… I can't do this anymore." The tears finally came and she sunk back on to the bed. She hated that he was seeing her like this.

Sawyer sat beside her and put a hand on her back. "Only eleven more days, then you'll never have to see Ben Linus again. You can tough it out for that long. Hell, after jumping through time, flaming arrow attacks, and killer nosebleeds, that'll be a piece of cake."

She looked over at him. He didn't know what Ben had done to her. He couldn't understand what seeing him here meant. But she nonetheless appreciated the effort to make her feel better. And he had a point – after three years of being under Ben's control, she could handle eleven more days. "Okay," she sniffed. "But in the meantime, Ben is joining Miles' mother on our list of people to avoid."

Sawyer chuckled and rubbed her back. "Now that's the Juliet I know. A wiseass to the end." He stood up. "Why don't you get some sleep? You've had a rough day."

She stretched out on the bed as Sawyer walked toward the door. He turned back just before leaving. "So with all that going on today, did you manage to get down to the motorpool at all?"

Juliet felt a flare of annoyance that he was bringing that up again, until she saw the teasing smile on his face. "Are you trying to take advantage of my vulnerable emotional state?" she said, feigning indignation.

"Well, I know you're not going to tell me when you're your normal badass self, so I'm trying to get creative here." She laughed and wiped the last of the tears from her face. Badass, really? She never would have used that term to describe herself.

"Get out of here, LaFleur. I'm still not telling you." She flipped over in bed, facing the wall. He laughed softly as he left, turning off the light and shutting the door. As frustrated as she still felt about Ben, she couldn't help the smile that crossed her face as she closed her eyes.


	4. Day Four

**Day Four**

After a restless night, Juliet woke to Sawyer shaking her gently. "Wake up, Juliet. We gotta get going."

Juliet grumbled and rolled back over.

"I don't think so," Sawyer said. He pulled the blankets back, causing Juliet to flinch from the sudden cold. "I already let you sleep late. It's almost ten."

Juliet sat up slowly. "Where are we going?" she said groggily.

"Out searching. You and me." She groaned, less enthusiastic now that she knew Ben was around. She would prefer to stay in the house and avoid him.

He looked at her closely, a teasing glint in his eyes. "You really aren't a morning person, are you?" She frowned, knowing she must look like a mess, half-awake with mussed hair. He continued, "Come on. Go take a quick shower. I already got you some breakfast from the cafeteria. "

"Why are you in such a rush this morning?" she asked, still cranky from waking up, but standing and getting her things for a shower.

He sighed. "We only got ten more days. I let you sleep a bit since you had a rough night, but I don't want to waste any more time." His consideration was sweet, especially since the delay was clearly bothering him. It still surprised her how intent he was on finding his people.

"Alright. Let me take a shower. I'll meet you in the kitchen in a few minutes."

She showered quickly and joined the others out in the kitchen for breakfast.

"Hey, you okay, Juliet?" Miles asked in between loud bites of cereal.

"Yes. I'm sorry about last night. I was a little overwhelmed by seeing Ben."

"Know what you mean," Miles said, uncharacteristically friendly. "I'm still freaked out from seeing my mother."

"Look at you, all friendly-like," Sawyer said to Miles, "We're all just going to have to 'freak out' more often if it means you're less of a jackass."

"Hah!" Miles said. "Only applies to Juliet. Or Daniel. Or Jin. You know, people who aren't you. You're just as much an ass to me as I am to you." Miles grinned at him with a mouth full of cereal.

"I suppose I can't argue with that," Sawyer conceded. Juliet smiled at their banter. Despite their teasing, the two were fast becoming friends.

"So which one of you is coming with us today?" She asked Jin and Miles.

"No. Sawyer gave us the day off," Jin said.

"Yep, and we've got plans," Miles beamed, dribbling milk down his chin.

"Yeah? What are your plans for today, Enos?" Sawyer asked, pushing back in his chair to balance on two legs.

"I'm going to go meet some of the ladies of the Dharma Initiative. You all might have lost someone recently, but I haven't. Jin here's coming with me, aren't you buddy?" He slapped Jin on the back. "We'll tell them about the crash and how poor Jin's lost his wife. The girls will be all sad and weepy. But Jin's out of bounds, so that's where I step in - the strong, caring friend. Fool-proof. I won't even be here when you two get back."

Sawyer rolled his eyes. "I'll believe it when I see it, Romeo."

"You're actually going to help him with this?" Juliet asked Jin.

Jin shrugged. "If it works, I get the bed alone."

"See?" Miles crowed. "We've got a symbiotic relationship here. I get a lady, he gets a bed to himself. "

"Alright," Sawyer stood, seeing Juliet had finished her breakfast. "Juliet and I are gonna head out. You two, keep an eye on Daniel. Hell, why don't you take him with you, Miles? He's got a pretty good sob story too."

Miles eyes lit up. "Good idea. Between Jin and Dan, I'll be able to find one sentimental chick who wants to live life in the face of all this death."

Juliet shook her head, knowing Miles wouldn't listen if she tried to disabuse him of his fanciful notions about women, and followed Sawyer outside. They walked over to the motorpool, picked up the Jeep, and headed west of the village.

Though Miles and his plans had been a good distraction at breakfast, sitting in the Jeep watching endless expanses of jungle race past, Juliet found her thoughts wandering towards Ben. Determined to avoid that emotional pitfall, Juliet tried to distract herself again by talking to Sawyer. "So why just you and me today? Miles driving you crazy?"

"Naw, Miles is a good guy," Sawyer replied from the driver's seat. "After you went to bed last night, I started thinking. We all got reasons to hate Ben, and knowing he's here as a kid spooked everyone. Now, I know you spent three years with him, and I've had my share of terrible bosses so I know how that can be too. But to have you, the most practical and level-headed one of us, react like _that_… there's gotta be more going on."

Juliet looked down at her hands, clenched in her lap. His intuition was spot-on, but she certainly did not want to talk about this.

Sawyer glanced sideways at her. "What did he do to you, Juliet?"

She put on her most stoic face. "Nothing. Don't you think three years of being around him was enough?"

"Bullshit. You've got a good poker face, you really do, but that's a lie, sweetheart."

Juliet remained silent, looking out at the jungle to avoid looking at him.

Sawyer let out an exasperated sigh. "Remember during the flashes, when I saw Kate in the jungle with Claire? I told you about that, even though I'm not really the sharing type myself. Not to mention you've read my whole goddamned file. I know nothing about you. Your turn to share with the class, Juliet."

She contemplated his words. It wasn't that she didn't trust him – after everything that had happened recently, she truly did – but she'd grown so accustomed to fending for herself, to not opening up to anyone. It was how she protected herself and she feared becoming vulnerable again.

Sawyer abruptly pulled over the Jeep. At her questioning look, he replied. "We're going to take a little hike. There's a clearing just through these woods. I spotted it yesterday. I want to go check it out. And while we do, you can tell me your story."

She climbed out of the Jeep and followed him into the jungle. He turned and gave her an expectant face, and she sighed deeply. Sharing wasn't her strongest suit either, but he had opened up to her. And it might help him understand her overreaction the previous night. "Alright. Are you sure you want to know?"

"Lay it on me, Blondie."

She took a deep, steadying breath and began. "I was a fertility specialist in Miami. Richard Alpert recruited me to come work for his company and do research. They promised I'd be back in six months, which was important as my older sister was pregnant and I wanted to be back in time for the birth. This was in 2001." Juliet paused, sadness welling in her as it always did when thinking of Rachel and Julian. They continued walking through the jungle, and Juliet was grateful she could focus on where she was going and not Sawyer's reaction to her words.

"Richard's 'company' ended up being the Others, and they brought me to the island to find out why women can't give birth here. After six months, I wasn't any closer to finding an answer and I wanted to go home. Ben wouldn't let me. So for the past two and half years I've been kept here, continuing to research the pregnancy problem, continuing to fail, and wanting to go home. Ben even showed me a video of my sister in Miami with her baby, my nephew whom I've never met."

"Jesus, Juliet…"

"I'm not done," she cut him off. If he wanted to know the story, she was going to tell him the whole thing. "I also became involved with one of the Others, a man named Goodwin. Married, mind you. Always a great idea. After your plane crashed, Ben sent Goodwin to infiltrate the tail section, like Ethan was sent to infiltrate your group. Ana Lucia killed him. Ben knew it was a dangerous assignment and sent Goodwin on purpose to die. Ben was jealous of Goodwin and considered me his own property," Juliet finished softly. She turned back to look at Sawyer. He had stopped walking and was staring at her.

"I had no idea," he said, guilt staining his voice.

"None of you did. Jack was the only one who cared enough to figure it out," she said, more bitterly than she intended.

Sawyer winced at her words. "I guess I deserve that. I was an ass to you at first."

"You weren't the only one."

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." His face was filled with remorse.

She nodded, accepting his apology. "Come on, let's keep going. We're almost there." They began walking again towards the clearing. "So," she summarized, "that's why seeing Ben affected me like that. I thought I'd finally escaped him."

"Understandable. Man's more disturbed than I thought." Sawyer paused. "But I still don't get why you want to leave. Your sister and nephew are in 2004. You leave this island in 1974, you're never going to see them."

She turned to him angrily. "Don't you think I know that? But after three years, I've given up hope of ever seeing them. The island has always found a way to keep me here. At this point, I'd take any chance to escape. I've tired of being trapped here." Her anger faded, replaced by fatigue and frustration.

They continued on in silence for a few minutes, before arriving at the clearing and beginning their search. To ease the tension, she asked, "So why do you want to stay here? Why not leave the island yourself?"

"I wasn't a fan of the 70's the first time around. I'd rather ride it out here than be surrounded by polyester and disco on the mainland." His comment did get a smile out of her, but she looked up at him pointedly.

He continued, more seriously this time. "Locke said he'd be back, and he'd bring them with him. I got nothing for me off-island, so I might as well wait here and hold down the fort until the few friends I do have come back. And Rose and Bernard and a few others might still be alive. I want to find them too."

She nodded. "Do you think you can convince Horace to let you stay past the two weeks?"

Worry crossed his face briefly, but then he flashed a dashing smile, complete with dimples. "I'm a con man, sweetheart. I could convince Horace to marry me if I wanted." She rolled her eyes and laughed at his cockiness.

They spent the rest of the day searching the clearing and the surrounding jungle to no avail. After the lingering tension faded, it was a pleasant day and she enjoyed the time with Sawyer. She would never admit he was right, but she did feel better having told him about Ben. Just knowing someone else understood what she had been through made it an easier burden to bear. At dusk, they returned to the Jeep and headed back towards the village.

"So," she said, breaking the companionable silence. "Do you think Miles is going to be there when we get back? Or do you think his plan succeeded?"

"I had forgotten about that," Sawyer laughed. "I don't think Miles is the ladies man he thinks he is. He's no me, at least."

Juliet shook her head. "Do men think that's actually true? That if a girl's weepy and emotional enough, she'll want to sleep with you?"

"Actually," he said with a smirk and perhaps a touch of melancholy, "I've had it happen before."

"I don't believe you," Juliet scoffed.

"It might not be something you would ever do. But then again, you ain't the average girl, Juliet. Maybe I shouldn't underestimate Miles. It is the 70's – people got pretty crazy back then."

"I don't think he has a chance."

"Care to make it interesting? If Miles gets laid tonight, you have to tell me if you're actually a mechanic. If he doesn't, I'll quit pestering you about it. How's that sound?"

She laughed at him. "Of all the things you could have asked for, that's what you chose? That's really bothering you, isn't it?" He didn't respond, but his silence was answer enough. She looked at him for a moment, considering. "Alright," she agreed with a sly smile.

He grinned and shook her hand. They quickly dropped off the Jeep and went back to the house, eager to settle their bet.

Standing on the doorstep, Sawyer smiled down at her with mischief in his eyes, "Moment of truth," he said. Juliet smirked before reaching for the knob and opening the door.

Jin, Daniel and Miles were seated around the kitchen table playing cards.

"Dammit, Miles!" Sawyer threw his hands up in frustration and scowled while Juliet laughed.

"Shut up!" Miles snapped. He turned back to Daniel and said, "Go fish."


	5. Day Five

**Author's Note: **I had a hectic week and was unable to respond to the reviews for the last chapter. So I would like to thank Pani Zagloba, AdulterousWhore, makealist, tia8206, KaydenceRei, and Aurora1020 for their reviews. I really appreciate it! I hope you all enjoy this chapter - it's one of my favorites!

**Day Five**

A clap of thunder startled Juliet awake, followed by the sound of Sawyer laughing.

"Even when I'm not scaring you awake, the island does it for me," he chuckled.

Juliet slowly roused herself, realizing the room was darker than normal. She looked outside to see an unrelenting rain assaulting the windows. She then turned to Sawyer, who was looking at her with a huge grin on his face.

"You're entirely too energetic in the morning, you know that?" Juliet said.

"Just never did see the point of wasting half the day," Sawyer replied. "While you've been sleeping, I've read three chapters." He held up his book.

Juliet groaned. "You really should stop reading until you get glasses. You'll give yourself headaches."

"I appreciate your concern for my welfare, Doc-"

"It's not concern for your welfare. I know the second you get a headache, I'm the one who's going to hear about it. I'm just trying to save myself the hassle."

Sawyer laughed again. "Well, good morning! Sounds like you're awake now."

Juliet propped her head up on her hand. "So what are we going to do about that today?" She nodded towards the window.

Sawyer instantly sobered. "We can't go out. There's no point." Juliet could sense his frustration. They only had have nine days left at this point, and with today a wash, that left just over a week.

"Hey," she said soothingly. "We've still got a week. And you deserve a day off too. You've been giving Miles, Jin and me days off, but not yourself. Couldn't hurt for you to take it easy." He really had been pushing himself hard the past week, and Juliet was beginning to worry he'd drive himself to exhaustion.

"I know. But I don't have to like it," he pouted.

She smiled at his annoyance. He could go from being a responsible leader to a petulant child fast than anyone she knew. "Come on, let's go see what the boys are up to." The pair walked out to the kitchen and living room. Daniel was just waking himself, stirring on the couch. Jin and Miles were talking at the table.

"Good morning," Juliet said, receiving good mornings back from Jin and Daniel. Miles, however, just glared at her. "What did I do to you?" she asked him.

"Nothing," Miles grunted. "I'm just annoyed with your entire gender right now."

She rolled her eyes, while Sawyer said, "Just because one of the Dharma girls didn't want to sleep with you, Hoss, doesn't mean you have to take it out on Juliet. If you'd like, I can give you lessons on how to win over the ladies."

Miles became even more annoyed. "Can it, Jim. I don't want to hear it from you right now."

Jin started laughing. "You are jealous of Sawyer," he said.

"Why would Miles be jealous of James?" Juliet asked.

"The girl-" Jin started, but he was interrupted by Miles. "Thanks a lot, Jin. We don't have to tell them that part of the story."

"What's this? It has to do with me, I want to know," Sawyer said.

Miles sighed. "Fine, I'll tell you. But first can we get some food? I'm starving."

"Rain," Jin said, pointing toward the window.

"No fooling. I hadn't noticed," Miles snapped, "but I'm still hungry."

Trying to maintain the peace and not wanting to go out to the cafeteria and get soaked herself, Juliet looked through the cabinets and the refrigerator. "Maybe Amy and Paul had some food here that's still good… wait, found some!" she said, pulling out a loaf of bread and jars of jelly and peanut butter. She rummaged around the drawers for a knife and began making sandwiches. "I'm making you a sandwich, Miles. Now tell us how you failed miserably," Juliet teased.

Miles shot her a deadly look in response. "You're not helping your case there, woman."

"Quit stalling already," Sawyer said, pulling up a chair next to Miles and propping his feet up on the table.

"Fine. So Jin and I went to the cafeteria for lunch and ran into that girl Deb, the redhead we met with Horace the first day, and her friend, Susan. Susan's that gorgeous brunette we always see at the cafeteria – you know the one I'm talking about, Sawyer." Juliet raised an eyebrow at Sawyer, who just shook his head and acted innocent, as if he had no idea what Miles was talking about. _Yeah, right. _Juliet thought. She was sure that even though he missed Kate, he already had a mental index of all the women here.

Miles continued, "So we were talking to Deb and Susan and it's going really well. I told them all about Jin and his story and they were appropriately distraught by it. Not to mention the fact that he can't speak English fully – they loved that! Girls always love foreigners. They had to go back to work though, so we made plans to meet them for dinner."

"This true so far, Jin?" Sawyer asked. Jin nodded. Juliet used the pause to give Jin and Miles their sandwiches.

"Thanks, Mom," Miles said, taking a bite of his sandwich. "We went back for dinner, this time bringing Daniel with us. And that's when everything went to hell. Deb was obviously disappointed and wanted to know where LaFleur was. She kept asking me all these questions, Where was Jim from? How long had I known him? Stuff like that." Miles' face darkened, whereas Sawyer puffed up proudly. He beamed at Juliet, who just glared back. She wasn't surprised at all by what Miles said, remembering the puppy-dog looks Deb had given Sawyer their first day here.

"But I thought I still had a chance with Susan at least, even if Deb is obviously blind and delusional."

"Hey, now…" Sawyer said, taking his feet off the table and sitting up straight.

Miles kept talking over him, "But then Dan started talking. Instead of just a nice, sad story about his lost love, he starts raving. How he watched Charlotte die, how he needs to find a way to save her, how it's all his fault. It crossed the line from endearingly sad into creepy. The girls were both freaked out and left. Don't get me wrong, I feel bad for Dan, I really do, but man, it ruined my chance."

"Well, I'm sorry Dan's dead girlfriend ruined your chance for some random action," Sawyer mocked, though Juliet detected a hint of seriousness in his voice. She placed a sandwich in front of Sawyer.

"You know I'm not-" Miles began.

Juliet interrupted "Where's Daniel?" She was holding his sandwich, but he was no longer on the couch. The other three looked around and then silently got up to search the house. They all reconvened a minute later. "He is gone." Jin said.

"He was just there a minute ago. How'd we miss him?" Sawyer asked.

"He must have gone out." Juliet said.

"Into the rain? He's crazy, but I didn't think he was that crazy. It's pouring out." Miles said.

They all stared at each other for moment. "Dammit," Sawyer scowled. "Let's go."

They scrounged around for a few coats, then went outside. The rain was pounding down, soaking them within a matter of seconds. "Alright," Sawyer shouted, trying to make himself heard over the wind and the rain. "Miles and Jin, head down to the cafeteria and search that side of the village. Me and Juliet will head towards the docks. Meet back here in fifteen minutes to check in."

The group dispersed and Juliet and Sawyer went to the docks. Sawyer caught her eye and frowned, and she gave him a small smile of encouragement. She could see his frustration, but also the worry. Daniel had been a shared source of concern between them.

They scoured the dock and the boathouse, with no luck. A cold wind cut through their coats, and mud caked their shoes and pants. Juliet shivered. This wasn't exactly the relaxing day off she'd imagined for them.

The came back to the village and walked around some of the outlying houses. As she was rounding a corner, Juliet caught sight of Daniel. He was sitting on a rock near the tree line, seemingly oblivious to the storm. He stared, fixated, at one of the houses. "James!" Juliet called out. "He's over here!" Juliet ran to Daniel, and crouched down besides him. "Daniel, are you alright? What are you doing out here?" Sawyer arrived and crouched down on the other side of him.

"Hi, Juliet." Daniel responded, still staring at the house. "I'm watching her – Charlotte. This is where she lives now. I… it's my fault, what happened to her. I want to watch her, protect her."

"Oh, Daniel," Juliet said. Her heart ached with pity and sadness for him. She brushed a lock of wet hair off his forehead. Sawyer looked over at her, anger bubbling in his eyes. _Not now,_ she told him silently. "Let's get you back to the house." She stood and with Sawyer's help, pulled Daniel up. She wrapped an arm around Daniel's waist and walked him back to the house. Miles and Jin were waiting on the porch.

"Dan! Hey man, are you okay?" Miles asked.

"Let's go inside," Juliet said, and the group trudged into the house, getting water and mud all over the floor. Jin went to the bathroom and brought out towels.

"So what happened?" Miles asked. He sat next to Juliet and Dan on the couch.

"Found him sitting on a rock, staring at Charlotte's house," Sawyer said, anger lacing his voice.

"It's just, talking about her yesterday, about what happened…" Daniel's voice quaked.

"I'm sorry, Dan. I shouldn't have brought you with me, made you talk about it." Miles apologized.

"It's okay," Jin said, patting Daniel on the back.

"No, it's not okay," Sawyer cut in. "I understand you're upset, Dan, but why would you do that? We're trying to get these people to trust us, and you're out there creeping around like a child molester. How do you think it looks to them that a grown man's out there in the pouring rain staring at one of their little girls? I'm going to bet you they think it's pretty damn creepy."

Juliet stood up and put an arm on Sawyer's arm, "James, calm down."

"No," he barked. "He's compromising everything we got here. He's going to-"

"James!" Juliet snapped at him. "_Stop._" She looked at him with an icy stare.

Sawyer's protest withered under her gaze. "Ahh.." Sawyer said, turning and stomping off to their room. Juliet sat back down again next to Daniel.

"I'm sorry," Daniel said, his voice full of dejection, "'I'm not trying to... to ruin this."

"Hey, hey, it's okay. This isn't your fault - you have every right to be grieving." She rubbed soothing circles on his back. "Why don't you go take a hot shower? It'll help you feel better after sitting in the rain."

"Ok." Daniel said. He stood up and slowly shuffled off to the bathroom. Juliet looked over at Jin and Miles. "You two okay?" she asked.

Jin nodded, but Miles still looked guilty. "Don't beat yourself up over this, Miles. He was feeling horrible, regardless of whether or not you brought it up." She reached over and squeezed his hand. "I'm going to go talk to James." Juliet got up and followed Sawyer's muddy footprints back to their bedroom.

She opened the door to find him pacing. He looked up at her as she came in, and then resumed his pacing. She stood there quietly, waiting for him to say something.

"Jesus, Juliet, what the hell is his problem?"

"You know it wasn't intentional."

"Doesn't matter if it was intentional or not. People are going to think we're crazy after they saw all five of us running around outside in the middle of the storm. And what if they start to question why Daniel's taken such an interest in baby Charlotte?" He stopped pacing and threw his hands up in frustration. "We're all hurt, we've all lost someone we care about. But we're dealing with it just fine. He needs to man up already." Sawyer sat down on his bed.

Juliet sat next to him. "We're all hurting, yes. But have you ever watched as the woman you loved slipped away right in front of your eyes? You probably wouldn't be acting much differently than Daniel. His trauma is greater than ours and we can't know what's he's going through."

Sawyer huffed. "I guess."

"And I know you're frustrated because we've lost a day of searching and you're getting worried we're not going to find Locke. But Daniel is one of your people too and he _is_ here. You need to look out for him just as much as you're looking out for Kate and Locke and everyone else."

Sawyer was quiet for a few moments, thinking. "Dammit, Juliet. I hate when you're this reasonable. Makes it hard to keep on being righteously indignant."

She laughed and patted him on the arm. "That's what I'm here for. Someone has to keep you in check."

"It's good to know you got my back, even when that means knocking some sense into me."

"You've had my back the past few days with Ben. I owed you." They smiled at each other, and Juliet felt a rush of affection for this man who was quickly becoming a dear friend. The moment was interrupted by the sound of the bathroom door opening and Daniel walking past.

"Shower's free. Why don't you hop in and get cleaned up?" Sawyer said. Juliet stood up, leaving a sizeable wet spot on the bed. Sawyer scowled. "We had to be sitting on my bed, of course."

She laughed and headed toward the door. "I'll let you know when I'm out, so you can get a turn," she said.

"Hey, Blondie," Sawyer called out and she turned back to face him. "If the shower gives you any trouble, I'm happy to get your back in there too." He winked, and Juliet rolled her eyes dramatically. But when she turned away, she felt a blush creep up her cheeks and an unexpected bout of butterflies in her stomach.


	6. Day Six

**Day Six**

The mood was somber the next morning. Daniel's actions the previous day had created a lingering tension in the house, which troubled Juliet. She pulled Sawyer off to one side. "If you don't mind, I'd like to stay with Daniel today. I want to talk to him about yesterday," she said.

Sawyer nodded. "That's probably a good idea. I don't like how edgy he's making everyone."

"No, me neither. And this way, you, Miles and Jin can go out, teach Jin some more dirty jokes, have some fun. Miles in particular is feeling guilty about Daniel and it'd be good for them to have a day apart."

"Just keep a close eye on our mad scientist," he said, squeezing her arm.

She smiled. "Of course. You be careful out there."

"Sure thing." Sawyer gathered up Miles and Jin and with a nod at Juliet, he left. Juliet went over at sat on the couch next to Daniel, still curled up in a blanket.

"How are you doing, Daniel?" she asked, putting a hand on his back.

"I'm okay. " He averted her gaze and looked down. "I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine. You didn't do anything wrong," she reassured him. "We all understand."

"I just- miss her. So much. But seeing her here, as a child, carefree, before anything bad has happened…" he trailed off, eyes becoming watery.

"It's hard enough losing someone," Juliet offered, "but it's even harder when you still have to see them everyday."

"I won't do it though. I won't tell her. I want to. But I can't. I can't be that person," Daniel rambled, and tears slipped down his cheeks.

Juliet leaned over and hugged him. "It's okay, Daniel. We'll get through this," she soothed, though she didn't understand what he was talking about. "In a week or so, we can leave. I think that will help."

Daniel pulled away from Juliet, and his face brightened. "I think so too. When I leave… it won't be for good. I need to go back, research some more. I have some theories, Juliet. I can come back, set things right." Juliet still didn't understand his meaning, but in that moment he was more lucid than he had been since Charlotte's death. She hoped that was a good sign at least.

"I can help her. I need to go to a research facility. A university maybe… time travel is an unknown, of course, but I think it's possible. I can help her, I just have to figure out how." Juliet smiled sadly at the earnest look on Daniel's face. Even if she didn't understand time travel, she understood his need to help the people he loved, and she admired his determination to do right by Charlotte. With a wrench of guilt, she thought of Rachel and Julian. For the first time, their departure date didn't seem like a relief, but a deadline.

Juliet spent the rest of the morning talking to Daniel. He told her about Charlotte, their time on the freighter, and the friendship that had formed between them, bonding over shared scientific interests. Daniel was a sweet man and his sincere, innocent love for Charlotte was touching. Juliet hoped focusing on Charlotte as he had known her would prevent Daniel from obsessing over the young Charlotte who was so close by.

At noontime, she went to the cafeteria to get them both some lunch. She was hesitant to leave Daniel behind, but wanted to keep him from seeing young Charlotte again. After extracting a promise from Daniel to not leave the house, she set out. She was in line getting food when Horace stepped up behind her.

"Good afternoon, Juliet," he said with a cheerful smile, "How are you on this fine day?"

"I'm doing well, thank you. How are you?"

"Much better than yesterday, for sure! That was one hell of a storm. Speaking of, is your team okay? I got a few reports from security that you and your crew were out in the storm."

Juliet flinched, remembering Sawyer's fears that Daniel's actions would lead Dharma to question them too closely. "I'm sorry about that, Horace." She reached the end of the food line. "Won't you come sit me for a few minutes? I'll explain it to you."

They sat down, and Juliet began, "I'm sorry that we alerted your security. One of our men, Daniel – his girlfriend was killed in the wreck. He hasn't been the same since. He was very upset yesterday, and took off into the storm. The rest of us went out to find him."

"Ah," Horace pursed his lips. "I'm sorry to hear that. You've all been through a trauma; his behavior is certainly understandable."

"Thank you, Horace." It didn't seem like they had picked up on Daniel fixating on Charlotte, which was a relief. Juliet put on her most charming smile to tried to change the subject "I'm here getting lunch for both him and me. You didn't think all this food was for just me, did you?" she teased, gesturing to the large amount of food on her tray.

Horace laughed. "Well, I noticed, but it would be rude to question a lady like that! So Jim and your other two men – Miles and Jin, was it? – they're out searching today?"

"Yes," Juliet said, glad to be off the topic of Daniel.

"I caught up with Jim a few days back – he said you hadn't had any luck so far." Horace took off his glasses and began polishing them with a napkin.

"Unfortunately not," she replied. "But we'll keep searching as long as we can."

Horace nodded. "You're good people, not giving up on the rest of your crew." He stood up. "I need to be getting back to work. The storm knocked down a few branches that need to be taken care of."

"It was good to talk to you, Horace," she said with a warm smile.

"The pleasure was mine, Juliet," he said, putting his glasses back on. "Again, let us know if there is anything you need."

"Actually," Juliet said, as a thought struck her. "There is something I could use your help with."

* * *

When Sawyer, Miles and Jin returned home in the evening, Juliet and Daniel had just finished cleaning up the mud and dirt they'd tracked in during the storm. Juliet stood up at their arrival. "How did it go today?" she asked, glad to see them all back safely. Though it had been her suggestion to stay with Daniel today, she would have preferred to be out there with them.

"Found nothing," Sawyer said, shaking his head.

"But Jin learned a lot!" Miles said, slapping Jin on the back. "I think Jim even taught me some things _I _didn't know." The three men shared a look and laughed, and Juliet was glad to see them looking more relaxed than when they had left that morning.

Sawyer walked over to Daniel. "How are you holding up, cowboy?" he asked. Daniel shrugged. "Look, Dan, I'm sorry about yesterday. I overreacted." Juliet smiled to herself, proud of Sawyer for his apology.

Daniel gave a half-smile. "I should apologize too. It wasn't my intent to put the group at risk."

"Speaking of that, I ran into Horace earlier today," Juliet told Sawyer. "I explained everything to him – how Daniel lost someone, and we were out searching for him. He understood and didn't make any connection to Charlotte. So no harm done." She patted Daniel on the shoulder.

Sawyer raised his eyebrows. "Nice work, Blondie. You'd make a fair conman yourself. Since everything here is under control then, I'm going to get my book." He headed towards the bedroom, and Juliet followed him. "You following me?" he asked her, as they entered their room.

"I have something for you."

"Something in the bedroom?" he asked with a smug grin.

Juliet ignored his comment and opened a drawer in her nightstand, rummaging around.

"How was Daniel today?" he asked.

"Better, I think." She pulled out a small bundle wrapped in a handkerchief. "But he needs to leave the island, more so than me even. Having to see Charlotte… that's what's preventing him from dealing with her death."

"Yeah, I can see that." Sawyer sighed. "But I still plan on getting Horace to let us stay longer."

"Even if you do, Daniel should leave."

"I don't want to break up our group," he said, not meeting her eyes. Juliet felt guilty. She was convinced that it was in Daniel's best interests to leave the island, and she herself still felt the pull to leave. But she understood his point too – she didn't like the thought of leaving them. It was late, however, and she didn't want to dwell on this subject yet again.

"Let's not worry about that right now. We still have plenty of time." She gave him the small bundle she was holding. "For you."

Eyeing her suspiciously, Sawyer took the handkerchief from her and unwrapped it to find a pair of reading glasses. He was quiet for a moment, before looking up at her. "Where did you…?"

"They're an old pair of Horace's. He gave them to me earlier today. They're not prescription, just a weak pair, but it's better than nothing." She shrugged.

"No, they're great," he said, a smile lighting up his face. "People don't often do thoughtful things for me." He walked over and gave her a quick hug. "Thank you, Juliet," he said sincerely.

"You're welcome." She looked up at him. Still standing close together, the moment was charged and Juliet felt her heart rate increase. She quickly reached past him to pick up his book from the nightstand, breaking the spell. She handed him the book with a smile, and they walked back out to the living room together.


	7. Day Seven

**Author's Note: **Half-way done! Thanks to everyone who's read the story so far, and I hope you've enjoyed Sawyer and Juliet's first week!

**Day Seven**

Juliet woke up to a pillow being tossed on her face. "Time to get up, Sleeping Beauty," Sawyer said from across the room. "Me, you and Miles are heading out in about twenty minutes. I have to run and talk to Horace, but you better be ready when I get back."

She grunted in assent as he left the room. She sat up slowly and swung her legs to the floor. It was the seventh day here, she remembered- one week left. With each day that went by, it seemed less and less likely that they'd find Locke in time. She would never say so to Sawyer, but she suspected he was thinking the same. And if Locke didn't come back, what would she do? A week ago, her course of action seemed obvious. But every day spent here, it was becoming less and less clear.

She shook her head in frustration and took a shower to relax. She then met Miles and Jin in the living room. "Do you know why James left in such a hurry?" she asked them.

"Yeah, he's gone to get the code for the security fence from Horace," Miles said, flopping onto the couch. "He said yesterday he wanted to expand our search more. If you ask me, he was getting pretty desperate. I think the fact that we only have one week left is getting to him."

"What if we do not find Locke?" Jin asked, sitting next to Miles on the couch. His face was full of anxiety.

"Well, that's the big question, isn't it?" Miles said. "Do we stay here and keep playing hippy? Do we leave? How do we get back to our own time?" His questions hung in the air, unanswered. Juliet was relieved at least to see she wasn't the only one concerned about what the next week would bring.

Juliet, Miles and Jin sat in silence, contemplating, when Sawyer returned. "Why the long faces, kids? Juliet and Miles, you should at least be happy – you get to spend the day with _me._" Sawyer grinned broadly. Juliet couldn't help but smile at his faux-narcissism, though Miles just rolled his eyes. "What is it about him that the ladies just love? I'm a wiseass too," he grumbled. Juliet instantly erased her smile, hoping that Miles comment was not directed at her.

"Come on, let's go," Sawyer said to Miles and Juliet. "Watch out for old Danny boy," he instructed Jin, who nodded in confirmation. The three of them picked up their Jeep at the motorpool and then drove out into the jungle.

"Miles tells me where's going beyond the fence today," Juliet stated.

With a quick glare at Miles, Sawyer said, "Yep. That's why I was talking to Horace this morning. Got the code for the fence and convinced him to let us borrow some rifles. Those handguns we've been toting around all week aren't going to cut it out here."

Juliet was faintly surprised that he'd managed to get all that out of Horace. But she'd learned firsthand he could be quite persuasive when needed, remembering that night at the dock a week prior. "Was Horace okay with it?" She asked.

"He didn't seem thrilled, no. And he said we're operating independently of the Dharma Initiative and they can't be held responsible if anything happens to us out here."

"Oh great," Miles piped up. "It's good to know that if we're eaten by polar bears or smashed into trees by a smoke monster, the Dharma Initiative isn't liable."

"For what it's worth, the polar bears should all be caged on the smaller island at this point," Juliet told him.

"I'm sure there are still plenty of other things that could kill us out here," Miles remarked.

"Stop being so optimistic, Miles," Sawyer said, as they pulled up next to the fence. "We're here," he announced. He climbed out of the Jeep and entered the code, causing the fence to whir and then fall silent. Sawyer got back in and drove through the fence, parking the vehicle just on the other side.

"I thought we weren't supposed to bring the Jeep outside the fence," Juliet said to Sawyer, who was re-entering the code and bringing the fence back online.

"I'm just bending the rules a bit," he winked at Juliet. "If we run into the monster or the Others out here, I don't want our getaway vehicle behind the fence."

"Yeah, that'd be like one of those nightmares," Miles agreed, "where you'd be fumbling to enter the code and you'd screw it up and they'd be bearing down on us…"

"Exactly," Sawyer said.

"Alright, let's get going then," Juliet said, handing out a rifle to both man and slinging her own over her shoulder. She and Miles headed out toward the jungle. "You coming, James?" she asked once she noticed him lingering behind.

"I'll catch up with you in a minute," Sawyer said, kneeling down next to the Jeep's wheel to fumble with his laces. "My boot's laced up wrong. Go on ahead, I'll fix it and then meet up with you."

Juliet stared at him for a second, suspicious, but then followed Miles into the jungle.

* * *

They spent the day hiking through the jungle. At one point, their hopes were raised when Miles insisted that he heard Bernard. But after a thorough search of the area, they couldn't find him. After that incident, it was a quiet day and they were unsuccessful at finding any other sign of their people.

Near the end of the day, they took a break by a stunning waterfall that Juliet had never seen before. It was a welcome reminder that the island could be a place of beauty, and not just hopelessness and frustration. "Even after three years here, I've never seen this waterfall before," Juliet commented to the other two men. "It's beautiful."

"Maybe the island isn't so bad after all," Sawyer suggested, raising his eyebrows at her.

"We haven't even run into any trouble today." Miles added. The second Miles finished speaking though, they heard voices, whispering in the trees.

"You just had to say that, didn't you?" Sawyer sighed. They looked around, but there was no one in sight. "You got anything illuminating on the subject of whispers, Ms. Other?" Sawyer asked Juliet.

She shook her head, not really focusing on his question. Her Other instincts had kicked in, and she was scanning the jungle, ears perked for any sound. "We should head back before-"

She was interrupted by a horrifying and distinctive sound, crashing through the jungle. They looked at each other, the dire circumstances clear to all of them. "Run!" Sawyer shouted, and all three took off back toward the Jeep. They raced through the trees, the monster gaining on them. A tree was ripped into the air directly behind them, and the force sent Sawyer sprawling to the ground, dropping his rifle.

"Go, Miles! We'll meet you back at the Jeep!" Juliet commanded, running back to Sawyer to help him up. She grabbed Sawyer's hand and pulled him up quickly. "You ok?" she asked, pulling him along behind her.

"Just dandy!" he shouted, though Juliet detected an undercurrent of pain in his voice. There was no time to worry about it though. "This way!" she shouted, pulling Sawyer sharply to the right. "Lead it away from Miles and the Jeep!" She ran and turned at sharp angles looking for an appropriate hiding place, any fear squashed underneath her adrenaline. They ran for minutes until Juliet spotted a shallow cave hidden behind a large tree. "In here, James!" she shouted, throwing herself behind the tree and pressing up against the rock wall behind her. Sawyer came in right behind her, putting his arms around her and holding her tightly in the small space. They both remained motionless as the monster crashed around them. Juliet squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath as a nearby tree was ripped away. But as suddenly as the onslaught began, it passed. The roaring of the monster faded, replaced by the sound of birds. They remained silent for a minute longer, before Juliet choked out "I think it's gone." Sawyer let go of her, and she slumped to the ground. She leaned her head back against the rock and Sawyer sat next to her. They sat shoulder to shoulder for a few minutes, letting their racing heartbeats and ragged breathing calm.

"Just when I think I'm starting to get the hang of this place," Sawyer said.

"Don't become complacent," Juliet warned. "You never know what the island will throw at you."

"Well, since you've had my back, it's tended to work out okay," He smiled at her, and she let out a shaky laugh. "Come on, let's go make sure Miles is okay." He pushed himself up and offered her a hand. She gratefully took it and let him pull her up. Her adrenaline was wearing off, replaced by fatigue and anxiety as she looked around the jungle. It had seemed so peaceful and beautiful moments ago, but now it was a dangerous unknown again.

They retraced their steps to find the rifles that they'd dropped when Sawyer fell, and then trudged back to the Jeep. Miles ran up to them. "You're okay!" he said, relieved. Sawyer clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Glad to see you made it, Enos."

"You won't believe this," Miles said. "When I got back here, one of the tires on the Jeep was flat."

"What?" Juliet said, alarmed.

"Don't worry about it though. While I was waiting for you, I switched it with the spare."

"You did what?" Sawyer exclaimed, anger evident in his voice.

"I switched the tire! Why is that a problem? I figured it would be better if the Jeep could drive when we're being crazed by a murderous cloud of smoke!" Miles shouted back.

Sawyer quickly brought his anger in check. "No, of course. Makes sense. Let's get going."

Juliet studied Sawyer, suspicious of both his reaction and the quick change in his attitude. She suddenly remembered him crouching by the tire earlier in the day, fixing the laces on his boot. "You did this," she said to him, unbelieving.

"What? What are you talking about, Blondie?" He said, but wouldn't meet her eye.

"It was you, wasn't it? You let the air out of the tire," she accused, half-angry, half-amused.

"Why the hell would he do that?" Miles asked.

"Because I told Horace I was the mechanic on our imaginary ship. It's been driving him crazy all week whether I was telling the truth or not. He let the air out of the tire to try and force my hand."

Sawyer still looked adamant, but Juliet noticed a slight blush on his cheeks, which confirmed her suspicions. She stared at him until he looked at her. "Alright, it was me," he said peevishly. "And it was just a tire. I didn't break the engine or anything."

Juliet laughed. "You're lucky your sabotage didn't cost us our lives."

"Maybe if you would just tell me the truth, I wouldn't have to go to such extremes." He said, scowling at her. Juliet could tell he wasn't upset that he was caught, but upset that his plan had failed.

Miles shook his head. "I don't like my life being put at risk because you got a crush, LaFleur," he huffed. Juliet was taken aback by Miles words, and quickly looked away from Sawyer.

There was an awkward silence before Sawyer grumbled, "Can it, Genghis. Let's get going." As they piled into the Jeep, Juliet snuck a look over at Sawyer. She was pleased to see the blush on his cheeks had deepened.


	8. Day Eight

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter! I was rather busy last week with the holidays and family! I hope all my fellow Americans had a lovely Thanksgiving!

**Day Eight**

Juliet was up early the next morning to prepare for another day of searching. Walking back into her room after a shower, she found Sawyer holding his side with a pained look on his face. When she entered the room, he immediately dropped his hand and changed his expression, but not fast enough.

"Almost ready to go?" He asked, obviously trying to distract her.

Her eyes narrowed. "Why were you holding your side?"

"It's nothing. Is Jin all set?"

"Don't try and change the subject. I saw your face when I walked in the room. What did you do to yourself?"

Sawyer frowned. "When I fell yesterday, when the monster was chasing us, I landed on a rock. Got banged up a bit. I just got a bad bruise."

"Let me see."

"No," he pouted, looking like a child.

"James, I'm a doctor. Let me just check to make sure it's nothing serious."

"I thought you didn't want to be a doctor anymore. You're a mechanic now," he said.

"You're not supposed to be asking me about that. That was our bet, remember?"

"I wasn't asking, just reminding you of what you yourself said."

"James," she said, in her best no-nonsense tone. She knew he could be stubborn, but so could she. She'd outlast him. "We're wasting time here. I just want to make sure you're alright."

"I told you, I'm fine. But if it'll get you to quit nagging…" He walked over to her and pulled his jeans down slightly, exposing a large and angry bruise on his hip. Juliet felt a flutter in her stomach, and she struggled to maintain her professionalism. She touched the bruise lightly, and he flinched at her touch. "Dammit, woman! That hurt."

"Must have been a pretty big rock," she quipped. "You're going to be fine."

"I could have told you that." The look on his face changed from stubborn frustration to mischief. "I think you just wanted me to take off my pants," he drawled.

She felt the heat rising in her cheeks, but she put on her most professional voice. "Despite what I told Horace, I am still a doctor and I will always do whatever I can to ensure that you, Daniel, Jin and Miles are healthy."

His smug grin faded to a scowl. "You're just like Jackass sometimes."

"I know you and Jack didn't get along, but he was an exceptional doctor." She smiled at the memory of Jack. Though things hadn't worked out between them, she still remembered him fondly.

Sawyer glowered. She imagined any compliment to Jack annoyed him. "Come on," she said. "Let's get Jin and head out. Maybe if we're lucky, we'll find Locke and you and Jack can go back to driving each other mad."

* * *

Juliet, Sawyer and Jin drove out to the fence and, for the second day, headed out beyond the confines of the Dharma Initiative. After the encounter with the monster, Juliet was cautious and tense, flinching at every sound. By early afternoon, she was exhausted, both physically and mentally. She sat down on a log and pulled out a canteen to take a break. Sawyer and Jin stopped nearby, both looking worn-out themselves. Juliet felt frustration boil up – they'd been out here for over a week with no success. They were not going to find Locke, and this was all an exercise in futility.

While Juliet was resting, enjoying the few minutes off her feet, she heard a solitary whisper in the jungle. A few seconds passed and another whispered joined the first. She felt a wave of panic and fear, quickly replaced by a surge of adrenaline. She turned to Sawyer and Jin, "Did you hear that?" she asked them.

"No," Jin replied, confusion on his face.

"What is it, Juliet?" Sawyer asked, coming to stand next to her.

"Whispers. Listen." She motioned for them to be quiet. Sure enough, another whisper started, loud enough this time for fear to cross both Sawyer and Jin's faces.

"Monster?" Jin asked, standing and gathering his rifle and canteen.

"Possibly," she said. "But you have the right idea. We need to leave." She reached for her own rifle, when the sound of a bullet rang out. They all wheeled around to see where the bullet had come from, but they could see nothing but trees.

"Just great," Sawyer muttered, grabbing his own things as another shot resounded around them. "Let's go!"

As Juliet stood, she heard another bullet, followed by a searing pain on her upper arm. She cried out, dropping her rifle and clutching her arm. Blood seeped through her fingers. Sawyer was quickly by her side, a panicked look on his face. "Are you okay?" He gingerly touched her arm, causing her to recoil in pain.

She peered down at her injury. It hurt, but it wasn't life threatening. "It's just a graze," she said through gritted teeth. Another trio of bullets echoed nearby.

Jin ran back to them, picking up Juliet's rifle and handing it to her. "Go, go go," he said urgently. Juliet nodded and Sawyer took her uninjured arm and started leading her away. Jin jogged ahead, running straight into a rough-looking man who had stepped out of the woods. He stumbled back and all three picked up their rifles and pointed them at the man. Juliet could barely hold hers up. The man just laughed at them, as a half dozen of his compatriots, all similarly disheveled, stepped out of the woods, surrounding Juliet, Sawyer and Jin.

"We thought you had learned after what we did to your buddy Paul," the man taunted.

"We ain't Dharma," Sawyer said. "We're just looking for our crew out here. We got no problem with you." He stepped in front of Juliet, shielding her.

"But we have a problem with you. You Dharma folk have been interfering too much lately. I want to make an example of you. Let's start with the girl – she's already banged up." The man advanced toward them.

Sawyer reached back, pulling Juliet closer to him. "Don't even try it," he growled. "Let me talk to Richard. He knows me, and he's knows we're not Dharma. I'm guessing you take orders from him."

"Lucky for me then, Richard isn't here, I'm in charge," he boasted. He stepped even closer to Sawyer and Juliet, puffed up with pride.

"A contrario, Philip," a voice intoned from the woods. Richard Alpert emerged, striding up next to the man. His immaculate dress contrasted sharply with Philip's dishabille, emphasizing his authority. Juliet sighed in relief and felt Sawyer let out a breath too. They looked at each other and smiled broadly. Richard stared Philip down, who cowered and slouched away, before turning to Sawyer. "We meet again."

"Sorry for the misunderstanding, Richard," Sawyer said. "We've been out here for the past week looking for John Locke. You know we're not a part of Dharma, so don't take this out of them."

"I understand," Richard said calmly. "And I apologize for my subordinate. He has a tendency to be overzealous."

Sawyer nodded. "No harm done." Juliet scoffed, feeling her arm sting with pain. Sawyer looked at her apologetically.

"Have you made any progress in locating Locke?" Richard asked.

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head sadly. "But we're gonna keep looking."

Richard tilted his head, considering them. "Will you be staying with Dharma as you continue to search?"

"For another week or so, hopefully longer."

"If you stay with Dharma, I will have to start holding you to the same standards we hold the other members of the Dharma Initiative. Even if we have common interests in this John Locke, I cannot openly favor anyone associated with Dharma. Do you understand?" His tone was even and without malice, but Juliet knew Richard well enough to detect the threat in his voice.

"In other words," she filled in, making sure Sawyer understood, "you can no longer protect us if we run into you again."

Richard inclined his head towards her. "Precisely. We will certainly not go out of our way to harm you, but I would encourage caution for your group."

"We get it," Sawyer said. "Thanks for saving our skins this time though." He held out his hand, which Richard shook.

"Until we meet again," Richard said. He turned back to Philip and the others. "Eamus!" he snapped, and he led his group back into the jungle. Philip shot a glare at Sawyer and Juliet before following.

After they had left, Juliet exhaled deeply and sat down on a log. ""Another close call," she said.

Jin came and sat next to her, giving her a piece of cloth he'd ripped from his shirt. "Arm," he said.

She smiled at his kindness. "Thank you, Jin." With his help, she dressed her injury. Sawyer watched them with a frown on his face.

"Let's head back to the Jeep," he said.

"Why?" Juliet asked. "It's only afternoon."

"Sweetheart, you got shot. I'm taking you back to the infirmary."

"It's just a graze. Nothing serious."

He walked beside her and helped her stand. "No arguments," he said.

"Fine," she said, letting her stubborn side subside. It would be best to get the wound cleaned out and bandaged properly. Not to mention this was becoming more and more dangerous each day and one of them was bound to get seriously hurt soon.

They went back to the Jeep and drove back to the Dharma Initiative. Sawyer turned to Jin. "Can you go find Miles and Daniel and let them know what happened? I'll take Juliet to the infirmary." Jin nodded and hurried off. Sawyer escorted Juliet over to the infirmary, helping her walk as if she had a serious leg wound, instead of a minor arm injury. She smiled inwardly at this protective side of him.

The doctor at the infirmary quickly patched Juliet up, cleaning and dressing the wound and giving her some antibiotics. "All better," the doctor said, patting Juliet on the knee. "Now if you two will please just wait here a few moments, I need to fill out an incident report for this little mishap." With a kind smile, the old man waddled out of the examination room to his office.

"I told you it wasn't serious," Juliet said to Sawyer with a smirk.

"Just like I told you this morning my bruise wasn't serious. You still wanted to check it out. And a bullet wound is more serious than a bruise."

She couldn't deny that. "I suppose you're right."

He sat up straighter and beamed at her words. "Damn straight I am." He turned serious. "You're sitting tomorrow out. I'll take Miles and Jin with me."

"You're still going to go out?" she said, struggling to keep the incredulity out of her tone.

"Of course," he said, as if confused that she would even question that. "Why?"

"We've narrowly escaped death the past two days now. You and I have both been hurt," she poked his bruised side to underscore her point, earning a yelp and a frown from him. "Things are escalating, James. One of us is going to end up seriously hurt or dead. And for what? We have nothing to show for all the searching we've done so far." She tried to keep her voice neutral, but his frown told her she hadn't been entirely successful.

"I know you don't care, Juliet, and I know you're going leave me the second you get a chance. But I'm not giving up on Locke and the rest of them." His voice was hard and cold.

Juliet let out a sigh. She didn't want to antagonize him, but she also didn't want to see him killed by his recklessness. She put a hand on his arm and squeezed it gently. "James, I'm not saying you should give up. I'm just suggesting maybe we could find a safer way to continue the search. Maybe set up a grid to better track where we search? At the very least, we need to get some walkies in case anything does happen."

Sawyer stared at her for a moment. "Juliet, please don't –"

"Well, the report's all set!" the doctor said, bustling back into the room. "I'll just have to let Horace know, what with the Hostiles being involved- Oh, I'm sorry, was I interrupting something?"

Sawyer sighed, stepping away from Juliet. "No, it's fine. Is she all set to go?"

"Yes, just make her take it easy for a few days, and she'll be just fine."

"That's easier said than done," Sawyer mumbled, catching Juliet's eye. She glared at him, but he just offered his hand and helped her off the examination table. "Let's go home, Blondie."


	9. Day Nine

**Day Nine**

Juliet drifted awake. She enjoyed the warmth of the sun pouring in through the window and the peaceful quiet of the house for a few minutes before she realized just how quiet it was. No one banging around in the bathroom. No Miles making cynical remarks. No Jin jabbering away in Korean. No Sawyer finding some way to pester her. The quiet peace became a cold loneliness.

She got out of bed and padded into the living room, where she found Daniel on the couch reading.

"Hey, Daniel. Have the others already left?" she asked.

"What?" Daniel looked up from his reading material. "Oh, um, yes. They left about an hour ago, I'd guess. Two maybe? I wasn't really paying attention, but I do remember Sawyer telling them to be quiet to not wake you up."

Juliet looked at the clock and frowned. It was already 10:30. She came and sat on the couch near Daniel, thinking. After their disagreement at the infirmary yesterday afternoon, there had been some tension between her and Sawyer. It hadn't seemed like anything major, just some bitterness on his part about her leaving and some exasperation on her part that he was still planning on going out searching. But now she was more than a little annoyed that he had snuck out of the house before she was up to escape her disapproval.

"Juliet?" Daniel asked.

Juliet shook her head, realizing she had missed something Daniel said. "I'm sorry, Daniel. What did you say?"

"How's your arm?"

"Oh," she looked down at her arm, a faint red blotch staining the bandages. "It's okay. I'll be fine." She smiled at him, feeling guilty that she'd been lost in her thoughts and not paying attention to him. "What are you reading?"

"It's a manual all about the Dharma Initiative and all the experiments they're doing. Zoology, physics, geology, biology. Did you know Dharma is based out of the University of Michigan? They have a giant research facility there. Horace told me about it and gave me the manual. When the sub comes back, I want to go there. Start my research again."

It was the most Juliet had heard him say in weeks, and the excitement on his face was obvious. She patted his knee. "That's great, Daniel. That's sounds perfect for you."

He smiled, and just his expression warmed her heart. "Well, I'll leave you to it then," she said, standing up and heading back to her room.

Juliet spent the day relaxing and reading. She knew her body needed rest to heal, but by mid-afternoon, she was starting to get cabin fever. Her mind kept drifting from the book in her lap. She was angry at Sawyer for leaving so early, for being so immature as to run away from her instead of talking about their disagreement. At the same time, she was worried about him - and Miles and Jin too, of course. The past few days had been dangerous, and she knew better than anyone that the island could deal out death at any moment.

Juliet stood up, frustrated and needing some fresh air. She walked back into the living room where Daniel was scribbling equations into a notebook. "Daniel, do you mind if I leave for a bit? I'm going to the infirmary to get my bandages changed."

"What?" Daniel looked up from his notes. "Uh, no. Of course not. I'll be fine." He smiled quickly before diving back into his equations.

Juliet left their house, glad to be outside in the sun and free from her wandering thoughts. She was walking towards the infirmary when she heard someone call out, "Juliet, wait!"

She turned to see Horace striding up behind her. "Hi, Horace," she said.

"Juliet, how are you doing? How's your arm?" he asked with genuine concern.

"It's been better, but I'll live," she said.

"Good, glad to hear it. I was worried when I heard about the attack on your group. The Hostiles…" he shook his head. "I know we're partially to blame for it, but they've been bold lately. Quite frankly I was amazed, and very relieved, that you all made it back safely."

"So was I," she agreed.

"I read Dr. Carmichael's report on the incident. It said there was a shootout, where you were injured. How did you escape that?"

"James managed to talk them down. He got Richard involved, and was able to get them to leave us alone."

Horace stared at her, eyes narrowed behind his glasses. After an unnerving few moments, Juliet asked, "Horace, is everything-"

"Juliet, would you and Jim be able to meet me tomorrow for a meeting? About noon?" he interrupted her. "I know your group is usually out searching by then. But this will be more important than that, I promise."

Juliet was surprised by the request. "A meeting for what?" she asked.

"I'd rather not say just yet. Do you think you both could make it?" he pressed.

"Sure." She replied, still a bit skeptical.

"Wonderful! I'll see you and Jim tomorrow at noon then. In my office. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a mountain of paperwork I need to return to." He nodded and then hurried back the way he came.

Shaking her head in confusion, Juliet continued on to the infirmary.

* * *

Juliet was reading in bed when she heard the front door open and Sawyer, Miles and Jin come in. She listened for a moment and was relieved that they sounded fine, no one hurt. She resumed her reading. A few minutes later, Sawyer plodded into their room, sat down on his bed and began taking off his boots.

Juliet peered at him from the corner of her eyes. "So was your strategy today to leave early enough to avoid me and any disagreement I might have with you?" she asked, still holding her book in front of her face.

"Course not, cupcake," Sawyer said with a charming, dimpled smile. "I just wanted to let you sleep in. You've been banged up there and need some rest."

She put the book down and turned towards him. "For a conman, you're a terrible liar."

Sawyer dropped the smile and scowled. "No, you just got this annoying habit of seeing right through me mixed with being able to resist my many charms." She stared at him and didn't respond. "Fine, I left early real quiet so you couldn't get mad or stop me from going," he admitted.

"Real mature, James," she teased. It had bothered her all day that he'd left, but now that he was back safe, it was more amusing than anything.

"Yeah, well. It was pretty low, I admit. But we only got four more days now and I wasn't about to lose a day because you're getting all motherly on us."

She took a moment to pause, letting her irritation at his comment subside before saying, "James, I care about you and Miles and Jin and I don't want you to get hurt out there."

"I know. I'm being an ass. I was the one who snuck off this morning." He sighed and looked down. After a moment, he continued, "I'm getting worried, Juliet. It's not looking good for us finding Locke anytime soon. Found nothing today, big surprise. And I still haven't talked to Horace about letting us stay longer. What are we gonna do in a few days when they kick us out? I never gave the Doc enough credit – being a leader ain't as easy as I thought. I'm not cut out for it." His voice was laden with guilt and sadness.

"Hey," Juliet said, getting up and sitting next to him on his bed. She put her hand on his forearm. "That's not true. You've done a wonderful job since Jack left." she said sincerely.

He looked up at her, hopeful. "Do you mean that?"

"Of course I do. I wouldn't lie to you. Hell, I think you've done better than Jack could have done in this situation. Jack is a great guy, but there is no way he could have lied to Horace so successfully. He would have tried to explain time travel and it would have been a disaster. You effortlessly came up with a convincing story and have kept us safe here. You look out for all of us, and have been out searching longer and harder than any of us too."

Sawyer sat there, digesting her words, and a huge smile slowly broke across his face. "Better than Jack, huh?"

Juliet rolled her eyes and bumped his shoulder with her own. "Of all I just said, that's what you hold on to?" She turned serious, "You should be proud of yourself, James. I'm proud of you."

He turned his head towards her, an expression she'd never seen before on his face. "Thank you, Juliet," he said softly. He put his hand over hers and squeezed it gently. Juliet looked down at their hands and then back up to find him watching her intently.

Uncomfortable with the tension that all of sudden filled the room, Juliet hopped off the bed and climbed back onto her own. "So stop beating yourself up, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed with a smile and a nod. She smiled back, glad to find that the tension had dissipated once she'd moved. "Hey, how's your arm feeling?" he asked.

"Better. Still hurts, but better," she replied. Looking down at her bandaged arm jogged a memory. "Oh, I ran into Horace today, on the way to the infirmary. He wants to meet with us tomorrow, at noon, in his office."

"What for?"

"He didn't say. He wanted me to tell you it'd be more important that going out to search again."

"Huh," Sawyer said, frowning in thought. "Well, maybe I can talk to him about letting us stay a little longer. You're coming too, right?"

"Yes."

"Good. I gotta admit, Sunshine, I'm getting used to you having my back." He flashed her another broad, dimpled smile.

Juliet rolled her eyes again, refusing to let him see that his charms were indeed working on her. She picked up her book and started to read again, as a surprising thought flashed through her mind: _Maybe staying wasn't such a bad idea after all. _


	10. Day Ten

**Author's Note: **I unfortunately did not have time to respond to the reviews for the last chapter. So a big THANK YOU to Korydwen, Pani Zagloba, se23401, justawritier, and Eyeon for their reviews! I can't tell you guys how much I appreciate your comments and feedback.

**Day Ten**

At eleven-thirty in the morning, Juliet and Sawyer headed towards Horace's office. Juliet knew they would be early for their noon appointment, but they were both anxious. Miles and Sawyer had spent much of the morning debating what Horace wanted, and Juliet had found it necessary to pull Sawyer away before they drove themselves – and her – crazy.

"Relax, James," Juliet said, noticing the tension in Sawyer's body. His only response was a scowl.

They reached Horace's office in under five minutes and Sawyer, despite his unease, held the door open for her. She walked in and was greeted by the cheerful face of Deb, Horace's young assistant. "Hi Juliet!" she chirped, standing up at her desk. When Sawyer walked in behind her, Deb's face lit up. "Jim! How are you!"

"Morning, Strawberry," Sawyer greeted her with a dimpled smile and Deb blushed deep red to match her hair. "We got a meeting with Horace at noon."

"Oh, right! He did mention that, yes." Deb glanced at the closed door behind her. "He's meeting with someone right now, but they should be done soon. Please, have a seat," she said, indicating two chairs facing her desk.

Juliet and Sawyer sat down, and Juliet picked up a copy of _Time _magazine sitting on an end table. She caught Sawyer's eye and showed him the cover with President Nixon on it. They grinned at each other conspiratorially. Juliet settled in to read the article on Watergate while Sawyer leaned his head back against the wall. "I feel like we're waiting outside the principal's office," Sawyer quipped.

Deb giggled and looked up. Sawyer gave her another smoldering smile and Deb's eyes widened and she quickly went back to her work. Sawyer looked over at Juliet with a cocky grin. Juliet just shook her head, half in amusement, half in disgust. At least Deb's painfully transparent crush seemed to help Sawyer relax a bit, Juliet mused.

A few minutes passed before the door to Horace's office opened. Horace came out, followed by another man. "It's been a pleasure working with you, Don. I wish you the best of luck," Horace said, shaking the man's hand. Horace watched as Don left, and then turned his attention to Juliet and Sawyer. "Jim, Juliet. I'm so glad you were able to come today. Please, come in," he said, gesturing towards his door.

They entered the office. It was a small and messy room, with a desk and three chairs shoehorned in. Piles of paper covered the desk.

"Have a seat," Horace said, pulling out one of the chairs opposite his desk for Juliet. He walked around and sat in his chair. "I apologize for the mess. As you can see, Juliet, when I told you I had mountains of paperwork, I was only slightly exaggerating," he laughed, patting a stack of papers a foot high. "And that's why I asked you here today."

"Paperwork?" Sawyer asked, a note of disbelief in his tone that mirrored the confusion Juliet felt.

Horace smiled, "Let me explain. This stack is all termination paperwork for a dozen members of the Dharma Initiative who have in the past week decided to end their association with us. The island is a dangerous place - I trust you've learned that in the past ten days - and we always make that clear to our new recruits. However, some seem to think it's just going to be some grand adventure and are unprepared for the reality of island life."

Horace paused for a moment, before continuing, "Paul's tragic death frightened everyone. And then word of the attack on your group spread, as did word of Juliet's injury. Between these two events, twelve of our members have decided the risks are no longer worth it. We are not a huge operation and every person here plays a critical role. And now we are down a dozen team members and our next batch of recruits isn't due for another seven months."

_Wait,_ Juliet thought frantically, _Is he offering…? _

"Jim, I know I told you that you weren't Dharma material. However, I like to think I'm man enough to admit when I'm wrong. And I misjudged you. I've been very impressed by you and your whole group these past two weeks. You've successfully handled two encounters with the Hostiles with no fatalities, and your dedication to finding your lost crew members is admirable. So it's a bit unorthodox, but considering our manpower shortage, I'd like to officially invite you, Juliet, Jin, Miles and Daniel to join the Dharma Initiative."

Juliet was stunned, and found a similar expression on Sawyer's face. They hadn't been expecting this at all.

Horace smiled at their expressions, and continued, "You'd having housing and food provided for you, you could keep searching for your crew, and in return, we'd find jobs that matched your skill sets. Juliet, I was thinking maybe you'd be interested in joining our motopool, for example." Sawyer looked over at Juliet pointedly; she could tell he was hoping she'd respond. She remained silent though, keeping her eyes focused on Horace.

Sawyer turned back towards Horace. "Horace, this is very –"

Horace held up his hands. "No, this is a big decision and I'm not asking for any answers right now. Please, take the next few days before the sub returns, consider our offer. When you're ready, you can each come and meet with me and we can discuss the details and decide on jobs. And if you decide not to take us up on our offer, you will be able to take the sub back to the mainland. Does that sound okay?"

Sawyer looked over at Juliet but she only managed a weak smile in return, her mind already racing with this new development. "That sounds great," Sawyer said, standing up and extending his hand to Horace. Juliet followed suit and Horace clasped her hand in both of his and gave her a warm smile. Horace escorted them back into the lobby.

"I will talk to you all soon then. Jim, Juliet," he nodded his head and returned to his office.

Seated at her desk, Deb looked up at them with a giddy smile. "I really hope you decide to stay, Jim," she flirted. Sawyer threw Deb a wink, but put a hand on the small of Juliet's back and lead her outside.

The burst of fresh air was a welcome relief after the stuffy office, and Juliet took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Wow," Sawyer said. "Wasn't expecting that." Juliet didn't respond, her thoughts miles away already. She remembered the previous night, remembered that staying hadn't seem like such a terrible idea anymore. But that was when she didn't have a choice, when she had thought that they would be forced to leave. It had been safe to entertain the idea about staying, because in reality, she was finally going to leave. Now though, she did have a choice.

"Hey," Sawyer's voice jogged her out of her reverie. "You in there?"

"Sorry," she said, casting him a glance, but still very distracted. "It's just… " she trailed off. She didn't know how to explain her conflicting thoughts. She shook her head and sighed.

"It's a lot to take in, yeah," Sawyer said and Juliet was glad he wasn't pushing her for more. "Come on, let's head back to the house, let the boys know. We'll figure the rest out later."

She let him lead her back to the house and sat silently, curled up in a chair, as he explained Horace's offer to Miles, Jin and Daniel. She didn't say much the rest of the day either, even after Sawyer raided the cafeteria and came back with beers to celebrate.

"Thanks, man," Miles said, as Sawyer plunked a beer down in front of him. "Alright, now that we know we'll be here for a while, I can work on charming the pants off that hot brunette we met. What was her name, Jin?"

"Susan," Jin filled in.

"Susan, right. So what's my plan?"

"You first step should be learning her name, cowboy," Sawyer said.

"Get Sawyer to help. That is your plan," Jin added, accepting both a bottle of beer and pat on the back from Sawyer.

"Smart man you are, Jinbo," Sawyer smirked. Miles glared at them both.

"Maybe now that we stay, I can have my own room." Jin said.

"Probably a good idea, considering how many ladies I'm going to have over," Miles boasted, taking a sip of his beer.

Juliet sat back on the couch, watching the men interact, smiling fondly at their teasing. Part of her felt such affection for them. But part of her was annoyed at how easily and quickly they had decided to accept Horace's offer. She was the lone holdout and, for the first time, she felt like an outsider among their group.

Sawyer walked over and sat down next to her. "I don't know if you like beer, and it looks like you could use something a little stronger anyways," he said, handing her a paper bag. She pulled a bottle out of the bag and flipped it over to read _Dharma Initiative Rum _on the label. She laughed at the inside joke and gave Sawyer a grateful smile before opening the bottle and taking a long swig. The rum burned going down and she shuddered. Considering how on edge she'd been ever since the meeting with Horace, alcohol certainly sounded like a good idea. She offered the bottle to Sawyer who took a drink and handed it back to her.

"Found the cards!" Daniel exclaimed, walking in from one of the bedrooms and sitting down at the kitchen table next to Miles and Jin.

"Come on, LaFleur, time to play!" Miles called out, kicking out the chair next to him.

Sawyer looked at Juliet, silently asking her if she was okay. She nodded at him and smiled. He patted her knee before pushing up off the couch and walking over to the table. "Alright, but I'm dealer," he said.

Juliet snuggled down into the couch, cradling the bottle of rum. She felt confusion and anxiety start to well up again, but she pushed them down with another drink. She watched the boys play for a while, happy that the mood in the house had lightened considerably with the big news. Even Daniel seemed excited. But she couldn't join them, not yet. Indecision preyed on her mind, and she sat back and took another swig of rum.


	11. Day Eleven

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the delay in publishing this chapter! The holidays and a visit with my family kept me busy the past few weeks. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and happy new year!!

**Day Eleven**

A loud shout of "Dammit!" from the kitchen woke Juliet. It was Miles, she decided, rolling out of bed.

Another shout from the kitchen: "That was my last ace!" That one was James, she smiled. She stumbled out into the kitchen to find Sawyer, Miles and Jin hunched over the table, clutching cards in their hands. Jin was pulling a large pile of cards towards himself, a giant grin on his face. Miles and Sawyer were both frowning. They didn't look like they had moved much from where she'd left them the previous night.

"Are you boys still up?" Juliet asked. "Did you ever go to sleep?"

All three men jumped at her voice, apparently unaware that she had entered the room. "Christ, Juliet," Sawyer growled. "Yes, we went to sleep. But we woke up early to keep playing."

"We're in the most epic game of War ever," Miles added. "Dan got out last night," he said, pointing towards the couch where Daniel was still sleeping. "But the three of us have been going for hours."

"War?" Juliet laughed. "Are you in middle school? Shouldn't you be playing something a bit more advanced for your age?"

"You try teaching a Korean who only speaks broken English what a trump card is," Sawyer retorted.

"Maybe we should have tried a little harder, Jim, considering he's kicking our asses at this," Miles said.

"Was that what all the yelling was about?" Juliet asked, amused at how seriously they were taking the game.

Sawyer scowled. "Damn Korean won a three-way war, took my last ace." He looked up at her apologetically, "Sorry if we woke you though."

She shrugged, really not minding at all. "Don't worry about it." She noticed his deck, "You should be more worried about the fact that you only have one card left." She smirked at him.

"I got it under control," he boasted, flipping his card over to reveal the queen of hearts. Miles flipped an eight of spades. Jin slowly pealed the top card off his large deck and flipped it over with great dramatic effect. King of clubs. "Dammit, Jin!" Sawyer exploded, slapping his hands on the table while Juliet, Miles and Jin all laughed.

"I thought you had it under control?" Juliet teased.

"Can it, wiseass," Sawyer snapped, but with a smile on his face. "I guess I'll take that as my cue to leave." He stood and headed towards the door. "Gotta date with Horace I don't want to miss. But Miles, kick Jin's ass for me." He threw them all a grin and left.

"Alright, Jin. It's just you and me now. I still got an ace," Miles said, diving back into the card game.

But Juliet wasn't paying attention to the game anymore. She leaned against the kitchen wall, lost in her thoughts. She knew Sawyer was on his way to Horace's office to officially join the Dharma Initiative. On one hand, she was proud of him, that he of all people, was willing to commit to Dharma and more truthfully, commit to finding his friends no matter how long it took. It was admirable. On the other hand, she was still annoyed at how easily the others had all made the decision to stay. It was an important, life-altering choice and she wasn't sure if she could make that same commitment just yet.

"Miles, why are you staying?" she asked, sitting down in Sawyer's recently vacated seat. "What do you have to gain from joining Dharma?"

Miles frowned. "We're in the middle of something here, in case you hadn't noticed," he said, holding up his deck of cards. Juliet stared him down and he relented with a sigh. "I guess it's not so much what would I gain from joining Dharma, which obviously isn't much - except maybe some tail - but what would I gain from leaving the island? Probably less. It's 1974 and I have no money or anything. What would I do out there?"

Juliet knew this, of course. As long as they were stuck in the 70's, there was nothing for any of them on the mainland. If she stayed here, at least she would have a few friends and a job if she wanted it.

"And maybe I'll figure out more about my dad." Miles said, quieter and more thoughtful than normal. "I saw my mom again the other day. Some guy with 'Dr. Chang' on his jacket was holding her hand… I got nothing out in the real world and I might solve the one thing I've wanted to know since I was a kid here, so it's not really a hard choice."

Juliet nodded realizing his reasons for staying weren't as spontaneous and careless as she had thought. "Jin, what about you? Why are you staying?" she asked, turning to the other man at the table.

Jin paused for a moment, a wistful smile crossing his face. "Sun," he said. Juliet reached over and squeezed his arm, unsurprised by Jin's love and devotion to his wife. So he and Miles were both staying for family, because they refused to give up hope – Jin, that he could one day be with his wife again, Miles that he might someday know his father. Juliet thought of Rachel and Julian, not wanting to give up on them either.

_But Miles and Jin have only been here for a few months, not years, _Juliet reminded herself. _ They haven't realized the island is a prison, that there is no hope for seeing their families again._

"Juliet?" Jin asked, interrupting her reverie. "You stay too?"

She looked down. "Honestly, I don't know yet."

"You should stay," Jin said.

"Yeah," Miles agreed, picking up his cards again. "It wouldn't be the same without you." He flipped over a ten of diamonds and he and Jin were quickly lost in their game again.

* * *

At dusk, Juliet found herself sitting at the end of the dock, staring out over the water. Towards home. But it wasn't home yet, she thought. It was 1974; there would be no use in going to the mainland now. She ran her hands over her face. Had she really changed her mind about this? This was her chance to escape the island, to escape Ben. After everything she had been through, could she really not take it?

"I'm getting some déjà-vu here," a voice said behind her. Recognizing the voice, she smiled and turned to see Sawyer striding down the dock towards her. "You gonna make a habit of sitting out on the dock late into the night?" He sat down next to her.

She ignored his teasing and asked, "How did your date with Horace go this morning?"

"Just fine. Maybe if you hadn't been avoiding us all day, you'd have heard about it already."

She sighed, feeling a twinge of guilt. "I needed some time to think things through," she said, hoping he would understand.

"That's what I figured. Thought I'd give you the day to get things in order. I know how crazy women can get with all their feelings."

"So what happened with Horace?" she asked, refusing to rise to the bait.

"You're looking at the newest member of the Dharma security team," he said, sitting up straighter.

"Congratulations, James!" she said, smiling at how proud he obviously was. She raised an eyebrow, "But security, really? Somewhat ironic, considering you're a criminal."

He laughed. "According to Horace, since I'm so good at dealing with the Hostiles, it was a natural fit. And my test scores matched up."

"Test scores?"

"Had to take an aptitude test and all. Probably the first test I haven't failed since second grade. Miles and Jin got assigned to security too. Our first day is tomorrow."

Juliet smiled, thinking of the three of them all on the security staff together. "I'm sure you'll all do great. I'm also sure this is the first honest job you've ever had."

He considered for a moment. "Besides a summer working construction for my uncle, I think you're right."

"Usually am," she grinned.

"That ain't so hard when you got files on everyone," he joked, receiving a glare in return.

"What about Daniel?" she asked, changing the subject.

He looked crestfallen for a moment. "He's going to work for Dharma, but at the University of Michigan. He'll be leaving on the sub in a few days."

Juliet nodded, knowing Sawyer didn't want him to leave, but also knowing this was best for Daniel. She patted his leg. "He will never be okay here as long Charlotte is around. And at least he will still be with Dharma, so we can still get in touch with him if needed."

Sawyer looked up at her, an intense and hopeful look on his face, "Are you staying?"

Juliet was confused for a moment, before realizing that she had all but implied she would be staying with her use of 'we.'She looked away, but she could still feel his gaze. "I don't know." She felt guilty she couldn't give him the answer he wanted.

"Juliet," Sawyer said, reaching over and taking her hand. "You've stayed for two weeks when you didn't have to. That's two more weeks than anyone has ever given me before. I'm not going to ask you to stay longer. If you want to leave, I can understand why and I won't try and stop you.

She squeezed his hand. "Thank you," she said, grateful to finally have someone that understood.

"But don't get me wrong, Blondie. I want you to stay. I don't think I could have gotten through the past few weeks without you. But I know you have more baggage about this place than me, Jin and Miles combined. I guess what I'm trying to say is, whatever you decide to do, I got your back."

Juliet looked away, tears in her eyes. She took a few moments to get her emotions under control before turning back to him and giving him a hug. "Thank you, James," she said again, burying her face in his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her. She was so grateful for his support and understanding. But at the same time, he was making it nearly impossible for her to leave him.


	12. Day Twelve

**Author's Note: **Only two more chapters after this one! A huge thanks to everyone who has stuck with me thus far!

**Day Twelve**

When Juliet awoke the next morning, she was alone in her room, but the muffled sound of the shower indicated her roommate's location. It was Sawyer's first day of work as Dharma's newest security member, and she smiled to think of him following orders and working nine to five.

Juliet climbed out of bed and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast. She knew Sawyer was nervous about his first day even if he didn't show it, and a good breakfast was always the best way to start the day. And she was still grateful for the kindness and understanding he had offered her the previous night. A nice breakfast was the least she could to do to repay him.

She bustled about the kitchen, preparing scrambled eggs and bacon. She heard the shower turn off and a few minutes later, she heard Sawyer enter the room. "I didn't know you could cook, Betty Crocker," he drawled. "Is there anything you can't do?"

Still bent over the stove, Juliet smiled at his compliment and responded, "I thought a good meal would help on your first day of work." Placing her spatula down, she turned to face Sawyer and immediately burst out laughing. Leaning against the door into the kitchen, Sawyer was wearing the standard beige Dharma jumpsuit with a star patch on the chest pocket. His hair was smooth, neat and combed for the first time in months, and his glasses were perched on his nose. The sight of him in the uniform was both so unexpected and so unlike what she was used to, that Juliet couldn't contain the fit of laughter.

Sawyer crossed his arms. "It ain't boding well for my new career that this getup causes that much laughter."

"I'm sorry, James. It's not that… it's just…," she said, unable to get her words out in-between the laughter.

Sawyer smiled, "I don't think I've ever seen you laugh like this. I look like that much of a moron, huh?"

Recognizing that there was honest concern in his question, Juliet fought to get her laughter under control. "No, no, of course not. It was just unexpected. After seeing all these other people in Dharma jumpsuits for weeks now, to see you wearing one too…" she chuckled again.

"Yeah, I know. I'm going all respectable," he said, scratching his neck self-consciously.

"James, you look the part perfectly and you're going to do great." She turned back to the stove and spooned some eggs and bacon onto a plate. Turning back, she offered the plate to him. "Here, have some breakfast. You have a big day ahead of you, Mr. LaFleur. You'll need your energy."

He walked forward and took the plate from her. "Thanks, Juliet," he said, giving her the full-dimpled smile. Juliet felt her knees weaken and she quickly turned back to the stove to begin preparing breakfast for Jin and Miles.

He sat down at the table with his plate when Miles and Jin entered the kitchen, both similarly decked out in Dharma jumpsuits. Their appearance caused Juliet to break out into another fit of giggles.

"Hey, don't laugh. It's the uniform," Miles said peevishly, obviously a bit uncomfortable in his new clothes.

"I'm not laughing," she said, still smiling broadly. "Take a seat and I'll have breakfast for you in a few minutes."

"Looking good, gentleman," Sawyer said to Miles and Jin as they sat down beside him. "Don't listen to her. You should have seen how much she laughed at me. And I know I look great, even in some hippy jumpsuit."

"I don't know if even you can pull this look off, Jim," Miles sulked.

"Ah, don't worry. Women love men in uniform, remember," Sawyer said, and Miles seemed to brighten at his words.

Juliet finished preparing breakfast and gave plates to Miles and Jin, and then to herself and a newly awake Daniel. They all sat down at the table together, joking and teasing each other – about the ugly jumpsuits, about Sawyer's glasses, about Jin getting fired because he couldn't understand orders, about how Juliet should have been a housewife instead of a doctor. After weeks with these men, the rhythm and flow of their conversation felt normal and comforting to Juliet, and their companionship was a welcome relief after years of being alone.

Sitting there enjoying their company and feeling genuinely happy, Juliet realized she had made up her mind. She would stay. If she was honest, she had known that was her decision the night before, on the dock with Sawyer. But in this moment, it had finally become clear to her what was the right path to take.

With an extra bounce in her step, Juliet gathered up their plates and put them in the sink. Miles, Jin and Sawyer walked to the door, and Juliet followed behind, to give them a final 'good luck' for their first day.

"Thank you. Breakfast was good," Jin said.

"Yeah, thanks, Mom," Miles added, giving her a quick, one-armed hug.

Surprised, Juliet just smiled. "You're welcome. Go have a good day and don't get fired." Miles and Jin left with a final wave, but Sawyer lingered. He pulled her into a tight hug, and she could feel the tension in his body. "You're going to do great, James," she whispered in his ear, fully believing it.

He squeezed her tighter and gave a soft, "Thank you." He let her go, anxiety still evident on his face.

"Go, you're going to be late," she coaxed. He hesitated a moment before swooping down and placing a kiss on her cheek, and then left quickly. Juliet stood rooted in place, staring at the door. Slowly, a grin split her face and warmth coursed through her body. It was time to go talk to Horace.


	13. Day Thirteen

**Author's Note: **Only one more chapter to go! I will certainly have it up by the premiere of season 6 next week (!!!!)

**Day Thirteen**

Juliet woke before anyone else in the house. It was her first day of work, and she had slept restlessly due to nerves. She crept to the shower, careful not to wake Sawyer, and then dressed in her new Dharma jumpsuit. She knew after laughing at Sawyer's uniform yesterday, she'd get it today. She smoothed down the navy blue jumpsuit, and looked at herself in the mirror. She shook her head. The island was certainly a mysterious place; she never could have imagined she'd be working as a mechanic in the 70's.

Sawyer stirred in his bed, and Juliet snuck out to the kitchen before he woke up. She hadn't told him yet that she was staying, and she wasn't sure how to go about it. She didn't want to make a huge deal of it.

Juliet set about making bacon and eggs. After a few minutes, she heard Sawyer scuffling down the hall in a repeat of the previous day.

"You keep making breakfast every morning and I might have to change my mind about letting you leave, Blondie," Sawyer mumbled, still drowsy.

She turned to face him. An expression of complete confusion came over his face. "What? What are you wearing?" he asked.

"What does it look like?" she replied, putting her hands on her waist.

"But... I don't understand. Are you trying to tell me… you're staying?" he asked, hope apparent in his voice.

"Yes, James," she stated.

He stopped dead. His mouth hung open and he shook his head before looking back at her. "Really?"

"Yes, really. I talked to Horace yesterday while you were at work."

He stared at her for a moment before a huge smile lit up his face. "Couldn't bear to leave me, could you?"

She glared at him, refusing to admit he was partially right.

He laughed. "Don't matter why you're staying, as long as you're staying." The smile he gave her was so big and so sincere, it reaffirmed that she had made the right decision. She smiled back.

"But yesterday?" he asked, confused again. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"You and the boys were buzzing about your first day," she shrugged and leaned against the counter, "I didn't want to make a big deal."

"Wait – why are you blue?" He walked closer, staring at the patch on her chest. Seeing the wrench, his eyes widened. "Motor pool? Do I finally get to know if the esteemed Dr. Burke has a sordid past as a grease monkey?"

She whacked him with a dish towel. "No, I was never a mechanic."

"Hah!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands. "I knew it!" His eyes shone with victory.

"Shh," she reprimanded him, grabbing his hands. "You'll wake up the others."

"I don't care. I was right. Even you can't do everything."

"I only said I was never a mechanic, meaning I was never licensed or worked as one. I _can _fix cars."

"What!" he exclaimed. "You're making me feel inadequate again, overachiever. When did you have time to learn to fix cars while also being a baby doctor?"

"My father loved cars, and he always had some clunker in the garage to work on. I used to help him out." She grew quiet for a moment. "When my parents divorced, I kept up with it. It was one of the only ways I could spend time with him."

Sawyer furrowed his brow. "I'm sorry, Juliet," he said, squeezing her hand.

"No, don't be. It's okay," she smiled. And she meant it – for once, talking about her parent's divorce wasn't painful. She didn't mind sharing with him, and appreciated his concern, knowing full well what he had been through with his parents had been far worse. "So as odd as it is, I have a lot of experience fixing cars from the 70's."

He shook his head. "Stuff like that makes me think Locke was right all along and none of this happened by mistake."

"Maybe," she conceded. "But you have to make a deal with me. I've agreed to stay – but I'm a mechanic. I am no longer a doctor as far anyone in Dharma knows."

"Are you sure?

"Yes. I watched too many women die on this island because I couldn't help them. I need a different line of work. So unless one of the polar bears has bitten off your arm, don't come looking for me. Agreed?"

He nodded. "Sure thing, Blondie. You're saving cars, not people."

"And you have to do your best to keep Ben away from me too."

"If I had known there were going to be so many demands, I would've put you on the sub myself," he scowled.

She put her hands on her hips again. "James?"

His scowl turned into a grin. "I agree to your demands. You don't have to doctor and I'll keep mini bug eyes away." He stuck out his hand and she shook it. "Now give me the spatula and go sit down."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You cook?" she asked, surprised, though she was realizing there was a lot more to this man than his file had let on. She handed him the spatula and sat down at the table.

"I learned pretty quick there's nothing that a woman likes more than a man who can cook. I usually only make breakfast for women I sleep with, but for you, I'll make an exception, " he winked.

"Well, you must be a pro at breakfast then," she retorted, not really wanting to think about how many women they were talking about.

Sawyer laughed. "See, this is why I like you, Juliet. You can dish it out as well as I can."

She rested her head in her hand, appreciating how much of a compliment that was coming from him. "That's why I had to stay - to keep you in check. Surrounded only by women like Deb and Susan, your ego would be unstoppable within a week."

"Well, here's your reward," he said, placing a plate of scrambled eggs in front of her.

She took a bite. "These are excellent, James," she enthused, taking another bite. "I just might have to sleep with you if it means I get breakfast like this." Sawyer looked at her, and Juliet was quite pleased with herself – not only for shocking him speechless, but for making James Ford blush.

* * *

Juliet's first day was rather successful, in her estimation. It had been years since she'd worked on a car, but it came back to her quickly. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed this sort of work – manual labor with satisfying results and no risk of causing someone's death. It was a refreshing change from the frustration and pain of the past three years.

At sunset, she was bent over, fiddling with the engine of one of the jeeps when she heard a voice behind her. "Not a bad view there, grease monkey." She rolled her eyes at Sawyer's innuendo and turned around to find him checking her out. "You gotta admit, Juliet, a girl working on cars – it's hot," he flirted.

"What can I help you with, LaFleur? Need a tune-up?" she said, giving him a warm smile in greeting.

He grinned lasciviously. "Anytime you want to tinker around with my parts, sweetheart, you're more than welcome."

"I walked into that one, didn't I?" she asked.

"Yep, you did. I couldn't leave that line hanging," he laughed.

She sighed, realizing she'd had to be more careful with what she said around him. "So what are you doing here, James?" she asked.

"Just wanted to see how your first day went. Thought I'd walk you back home," he said, not looking at her.

She felt a rush of warmth through her body. "Let me just go check out with my boss."

She walked over to the gruff man crouched over a tool box. "Am I all set to go for the day, Walter?"

He stood up and dusted off his hands on his jumpsuit. "Yep, get out of here, Juliet. And good job today. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow." He shook her hand before returning to his tools.

Juliet fell into step besides Sawyer as they headed back to their house. "One day and your boss already loves you, Brown Nose," Sawyer teased, nudging her with his elbow.

"Like you can talk. Miles was complaining last night about you were stealing the show yesterday."

"When the competition is Miles and Jin, it's not hard to look good."

"So how did your second day go?" she asked.

"Piece of cake. They're trying to scare us with the smoke monster, the sonic fence and the Hostiles. But it ain't like we've got no experience dealing with those things already. I'll get a promotion any day now," he joked.

They fell into a companionable silence, but as they approached the house, they heard a loud crash followed by a dull thud. They were both instantly on alert, instincts honed by months and years of near-constant danger on the island. They climbed the porch silently and stood by the door, Sawyer holding the door knob. He locked eyes with Juliet and she nodded, before he flung open the door.

Miles was sprawled out on the floor, a chair on the ground next to him. Jin was standing above him giggling, while Daniel was chugging a bottle of Dharma wine.

"What are you up to?" Juliet asked, incredulous.

"We're giving Dan a proper send off!" Miles exclaimed from the floor, causing Jin to giggle even harder. Sawyer reached over and helped pull Miles up.

Juliet looked over at Sawyer and cocked an eyebrow. "When I left to get you, they were just having a glass of wine," he explained. "I didn't know they'd get this out of hand."

She laughed. "Daniel, here, give me that bottle." She walked over to him and took the wine bottle from his hands. "I know it's your party, but you have to share." She took a swig from the wine bottle before passing it over to Sawyer with a wink. He smiled back at her and drank some himself.

Daniel looked contemplative as he sat down at the table. "Maybe… maybe I should go say goodbye to Charlotte. I wouldn't want to leave without saying goodbye," he began to stand up, before Sawyer pushed him back into his chair.

"It's too late for that, Danny boy. She'll be asleep," Sawyer said, casting a worried glance at Juliet.

"Why don't we play cards?" she suggested, trying to change the subject. She wrangled Miles back into his chair and got a still-giggling Jin to sit down before grabbing the deck and joining them at the table.

"What are we going to play? Strip poker?" Sawyer leered at Juliet.

"That was rather predictable of you, James," she stated, taking the wine bottle back from him and taking another sip.

"War!" Jin yelled out.

"No!" both Sawyer and Miles yelled simultaneously, setting Jin off on another round of giggles.

"I used to play Memory with Charlotte…" Daniel began wistfully.

"How about rummy?" Juliet cut him off. "We can teach Jin and he hopefully won't rout you all again."

"I'm not too worried about that tonight," Sawyer laughed, pushing away a tipsy Jin who had slouched over onto him.

"That okay with you, Daniel?" Juliet asked.

"Sure, sure," he responded. Juliet quickly passed him the wine before he could mention Charlotte again.

"Sounds good to me!" Miles crowed. "And, I would like to tell you all that I have scored a date with Susan for this weekend!"

"Nice work, Romeo!" Sawyer said, slapping him on the back.

"Cheers!" Jin shouted, grabbing the wine bottle from Dan and hoisting it in the air towards Miles.

Miles took the wine bottle from Jin and took a long drink. "You know, maybe this Dharma thing isn't going to be so bad."

"I think you may be right, Miles," Juliet agreed, as she began to deal out the cards.


	14. Day Fourteen

**Author's Note: **This is the final chapter (which turned out to be more of an epilogue really) and the end of my first multi-chapter fic! A huge thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed and favorited the story. Your feedback and encouragement was amazing and so appreciated. I would especially like to thank teh-Sara, pani zagloba, se34201, liam, eyeon, AdulterousWhore, Aurora1020, KaydenceRei, kab16, CarolynneRuth, Elsa-Rose, tia8206, makealist, ILoveNeil, Korydwen, justawriter, Northern Wolf, FabyGinny05, S, and Kasey22 for taking the time to leave reviews. Here's hoping for good things for Sawyer and Juliet in season 6! And if that doesn't happen, I just might have to take eyeon's idea of writing a 1,082 chapter fic detailing each day of their three years together! ;)

**Day Fourteen**

The sub was scheduled to leave at 8 am. Between hangovers and Daniel's imminent departure, it was a somber morning at the house. After a quick breakfast, Juliet, Sawyer, Daniel, Miles and Jin all headed down to the dock, Daniel clutching his small pack filled with the few belongings he had.

The dock was bustling with activity - people milling around, supplies being loaded, Dharma vans rumbling in the background. Juliet, Sawyer, Jin and Miles waited on the shore as Daniel went to check in on the passenger list. Afterwards, he returned back to them. "Well, goodbye, I guess…" he trailed off.

Sawyer gave him a hearty handshake. "Good luck, Dan."

Daniel nodded in farewell and then turned to Juliet. She gave him a hug, squeezing him tightly. "Take care of yourself, Daniel." She pulled away and looked up at him. "Keep in touch if you can. We'll be right here if you need anything."

"Thank you, Juliet." He gave her a sad smile, and Juliet had to fight back tears. After everything they'd been through, it was hard to let Daniel – sweet, vulnerable Daniel - go. She returned his smile through watery eyes.

With a handshake from Jin and a hug from Miles, Daniel walked down the dock towards the sub. He turned back and gave them a half-hearted wave and a final nod before climbing down into the sub.

Watching Daniel board the sub, a part of Juliet cried out silently, _That should be me!_ This was her chance; she could leave the island right now. Her heart began racing frantically. _Why am I staying? _she pleaded to herself_. _

Seeming to sense her panic, Sawyer put a friendly arm around her shoulders. Leaning down towards her, he whispered, "You okay?"

Juliet took a deep breath, letting his presence calm her. The pull to leave the island was strong, but she had already made her decision. She would stay because it was 1974, and she had nothing out in the real world. She would stay for the hope of one day seeing Rachel again and of one day meeting Julian. She looked up at Sawyer, who was watching her with concern. And she would stay because she was no longer alone here.

"I'm fine," she said with a smile. She turned away from the dock, pulling Sawyer with her. "Let's go home, James."


End file.
